1961 in Canada

Events from the year 1961 in Canada.

Crown

 * Monarch – Elizabeth II

Federal government

 * Governor General – Georges Vanier
 * Prime Minister – John Diefenbaker
 * Chief Justice – Patrick Kerwin (Ontario)
 * Parliament – 24th

Lieutenant governors

 * Lieutenant Governor of Alberta – John Percy Page
 * Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia – George Pearkes
 * Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba – Errick Willis
 * Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick – Joseph Leonard O'Brien
 * Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland – Campbell Leonard Macpherson
 * Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia – Edward Chester Plow
 * Lieutenant Governor of Ontario – John Keiller MacKay
 * Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island – Frederick Walter Hyndman
 * Lieutenant Governor of Quebec – Onésime Gagnon (until October 12) then Paul Comtois
 * Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan – Frank Lindsay Bastedo

Premiers

 * Premier of Alberta – Ernest Manning
 * Premier of British Columbia – W.A.C. Bennett
 * Premier of Manitoba – Dufferin Roblin
 * Premier of New Brunswick – Louis Robichaud
 * Premier of Newfoundland – Joey Smallwood
 * Premier of Nova Scotia – Robert Stanfield
 * Premier of Ontario – Leslie Frost (until November 8) then John Robarts
 * Premier of Prince Edward Island – Walter Shaw
 * Premier of Quebec – Jean Lesage
 * Premier of Saskatchewan – Tommy Douglas (until November 7) then Woodrow Lloyd

Commissioners

 * Commissioner of Yukon – Frederick Howard Collins
 * Commissioner of Northwest Territories – Robert Gordon Robertson

January to June

 * June 1
 * The Canadian Bank of Commerce and the Imperial Bank of Canada merge to form the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce.
 * Census Day for the 1961 Census of Canada, which finds Canada has a population of 18,238,247.
 * June 6 – CUSO is formed
 * June 13 – The NCC study of Ottawa's new Green Belt is completed
 * June 14 – James Elliott Coyne, the Governor of the Bank of Canada resigns due to disagreements with the federal government's fiscal policies

July to December

 * August 3 – Tommy Douglas is elected leader of the newly formed New Democratic Party
 * August 14 – 15 – The Premiers meet in Charlottetown
 * August 26 – The new home for the Hockey Hall of Fame opens in Toronto, at the Canadian National Exhibition.
 * October 1 – CTV, Canada's second major television network, begins broadcasting
 * November 7 – Woodrow Lloyd becomes premier of Saskatchewan, replacing Tommy Douglas
 * November 8 – John Robarts becomes premier of Ontario, replacing Leslie Frost
 * November 17 – Saskatchewan passes a bill creating Canada's first government run health system
 * December 28 – Canada's first BOMARC Missile squadron is formed

Full date unknown

 * The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation becomes the New Democratic Party
 * The Massey Lectures are created
 * The transatlantic telephone system is officially launched with a call from Elizabeth II to Prime Minister John Diefenbaker.
 * The Canadian Conference of the Arts is established.

Sport

 * March 12 – The Trail Smoke Eaters win the 1961 Ice Hockey World Championships for Canada.
 * May 5 – The Ontario Hockey Association's Toronto St. Michael's Majors win their fourth (and final) Memorial Cup by defeating the Central Alberta Hockey League's Edmonton Oil Kings 4 games to 2. The deciding Game 6 was played at Edmonton Gardens.
 * July 11 – Gene Kiniski becomes the first Canadian to win the AWA World Heavyweight Championship by defeating Verne Gagne
 * December 2 – The Winnipeg Blue Bombers win their 6th Grey Cup by defeating the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 21–14  in the 49th Grey Cup at CNE Stadium in Toronto.

New books

 * Morley Callaghan: A Passion in Rome
 * Max Aitken: Courage
 * Margaret Atwood: Double Persephone
 * Farley Mowat: Owls in the Family

Awards

 * See 1961 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.
 * Stephen Leacock Award: Norman Ward, Mice in the Beer

January to March

 * January 11 – Graham Welbourn, swimmer
 * January 15 - Yves Pelletier, film director and actor
 * January 18 – Mark Messier, ice hockey player
 * January 26 – Wayne Gretzky, ice hockey player and coach
 * January 27 – Tony Clement, politician and Minister
 * January 28 – Normand Rochefort, ice hockey player and coach
 * February 4 – Connor O'Brien, Canadian skier
 * February 10 – Steve Pagendam, boxer
 * February 21 – Paul Edwards, politician and lawyer
 * February 23 – Silvia Ruegger, long-distance runner (died 2019)
 * February 27 – Ann Peel, race walker
 * February 28 - René Simard, singer
 * March 16 – Todd McFarlane, cartoonist, comic book artist, writer, toy designer and entrepreneur
 * March 24 – Pat Turner, rower and Olympic gold medallist

April to June

 * April 6 – Gene Eugene, actor, record producer, engineer, composer and musician (died 2000)
 * April 10 – Barb Tarbox, anti-smoking activist (died 2003)
 * April 22 – Scott D. Sampson, paleontologist, science communicator and television presenter
 * May 1 – Clint Malarchuk, ice hockey player
 * May 8 – Greg Thomey, comedian
 * May 9 – Darren Praznik, politician
 * May 10 – Randy Cunneyworth, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
 * June 1 – Paul Coffey, ice hockey player
 * June 9 – Michael J. Fox, actor, author and voice over artist

July to September

 * July 1 – Michelle Wright, singer-songwriter
 * July 8 – Kelly Kryczka, synchronized swimmer
 * July 17 – Blair Horn, rower and Olympic gold medallist
 * July 23
 * André Ducharme, author, comedian and humorist
 * Richard Martineau, journalist
 * Rob Stewart, actor
 * July 24 – Brian McMahon, coxswain and Olympic gold medallist
 * July 26 – Alan Lowe, politician
 * August 12 – Peter Szmidt, swimmer
 * August 20 – Lizanne Bussières, long-distance runner
 * August 23 – François Lapointe, racewalker
 * August 25 – Dave Tippett, ice hockey player and coach
 * September 12 – Mylène Farmer, singer, songwriter, actress and author
 * September 16 – Jen Tolley, actress, voice actress and singer
 * September 18 – Denis Lambert, boxer
 * September 24
 * Nancy Garapick, swimmer and Olympic bronze medallist
 * Luc Picard, actor
 * September 25 – Tracy Wilson, ice dancer
 * September 27 – Randy Vancourt, composer and entertainer
 * September 30 – Erica Ehm, video jockey, songwriter and actress

October to December

 * October 16 - Pierre Karl Péladeau, president and CEO of Quebecor Inc., Quebecor Media Inc. and Sun Media Corporation
 * October 25 – Alison Webb, judoka
 * November 2 – k.d. lang, singer-songwriter
 * November 23 – Floyd Roland, politician and 11th Premier of the Northwest Territories
 * December 8 – André Bachand, politician
 * December 10 – Mark McKoy, hurdler and Olympic gold medallist
 * December 11 - Michel Courtemanche, actor
 * December 13 – Ranza Clark, middle-distance runner
 * December 18 – Brian Orser, figure skater, double Olympic silver medallist and World Champion
 * December 30
 * Douglas Coupland, novelist
 * Ben Johnson, Jamaica-born sprinter, double Olympic bronze medallist, Olympic gold medal rescinded as disqualified for doping

January to June

 * May 12 - Janis Babson (born 1950)
 * May 14 – Albert Sévigny, politician (born 1881)
 * May 28 – Frank Boyes, politician (born 1874)
 * May 29 – Gilbert Layton, businessman and politician (born 1899)
 * May 31 – Walter Little, politician (born 1877)
 * June 6 – William Anderson, politician and businessman (born 1905)
 * June 19 – Richard Ernest William Turner, soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross (born 1871)

July to December

 * July 12 – Mazo de la Roche, author (born 1879)
 * July 15 – John Edward Brownlee, politician and 5th Premier of Alberta (born 1884)
 * September 12 – Joseph-Arthur Bradette, politician (born 1886)
 * September 16 – Percy Chapman Black, politician (born 1878)
 * September 21 – William Duncan Herridge, politician and diplomat (born 1888)
 * September 30 - Onésime Gagnon, politician and the 20th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (born 1888)
 * October 15 – Peter Dickinson, architect (born 1925)
 * October 22 – Harry Nixon, politician and 13th Premier of Ontario (born 1891)

Full date unknown

 * Anne Wilkinson, poet (born 1910)