All Canadians?

W.J. Sisler traveled around the Interlake area of Manitoba on various occasions in the first half of the 20th Century. He took several photographs, which make up the Sisler Collection at the Provincial Archives of Manitoba and wrote a significant amount about his trips and observations about the country and its pioneers.

In 1946 he interviewed some of the pioneers and Sigurdur Stefansson from Hnausa, on the west coast of Lake Winnipeg, Manitoba recounted this story:

"My father taught me to read in his own language, to sing the Icelandic songs and I learned from him the old Icelandic dances. Though I fought with the Canadians in the war of 1914 and was wounded three times I still think of myself as belonging to Iceland. I love the sagas, songs and dances of the little country. Though I fought three years for Canada I do not love it as I do the country where my father was born. I hope to go some day to the country where the sagas, songs and dances I learned in my youth are known. 

Once in London during the war I was in a pub with two companions. One of these was an eastern Canadian and the other was English born but had lived for some years in Canada. We met a group of English soldiers on leave. They began to poke fun at Canadians telling us we were no good for fighting men until the English showed us how. Then our English-born companion tore into one of them, we jumped into the other two and gave them enough so that they stopped making fun of us and they left the pub. Our own little Englishman was right with us. We three were all Canadian then. When I got back home I still felt that I belonged to to the country of the Icelandic songs and sagas. I want to go there some day to see it." (Provincial Archives of Mantioba. MG14 C28 File 8b).

Sisler taught the children of immigrants in North Winnipeg for years and was very interested in the idea and the processes by which  people of different backgrounds could become Canadians. Some of his notes bare witness to this as well as some of his newspaper clippings - such as the photograph below of the Strathcona School Football team, which is a striking illustration of the work of Empire as boys from various background work together as a successful team.