1966 in Canada

Events from the year 1966 in Canada.

Crown

 * Monarch – Elizabeth II

Federal government

 * Governor General – Georges Vanier
 * Prime Minister – Lester B. Pearson
 * Chief Justice – Robert Taschereau (Quebec)
 * Parliament – 27th

Lieutenant governors

 * Lieutenant Governor of Alberta – John Percy Page (until January 6) then Grant MacEwan
 * Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia – George Pearkes
 * Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba – Richard Spink Bowles
 * Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick – John B. McNair
 * Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland – Fabian O'Dea
 * Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia – Henry Poole MacKeen
 * Lieutenant Governor of Ontario – William Earl Rowe
 * Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island – Willibald Joseph MacDonald
 * Lieutenant Governor of Quebec – Paul Comtois (until February 22) then Hugues Lapointe
 * Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan – Robert Hanbidge

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 – John Robarts
 * Premier of Prince Edward Island – Walter Shaw (until July 28) then Alexander B. Campbell
 * Premier of Quebec – Jean Lesage (until June 16) then Daniel Johnson, Sr.
 * Premier of Saskatchewan – Ross Thatcher

Commissioners

 * Commissioner of Yukon – Gordon Robertson Cameron (until November 7) then James Smith
 * Commissioner of Northwest Territories – Bent Gestur Sivertz

Events

 * January 1: The Canada Pension Plan and the Quebec Pension Plan both begin operation
 * February 25: Toronto Transit Commission inaugurates the Bloor-Danforth Subway line.
 * March 4: The Munsinger Affair is Canada's first major political sex scandal
 * May 1: Army camps, RCAF stations, and the RCN's land-based installations become Canadian Forces bases. Training schools and the pay system are unified.
 * May 18: Paul Joseph Chartier is killed when a bomb he is carrying goes off on Parliament Hill
 * June 5: The Union Nationale under Daniel Johnson, Sr. is elected in Quebec.
 * June 16: Daniel Johnson, Sr., becomes premier of Quebec, replacing Jean Lesage
 * July 28: Alexander B. Campbell becomes premier of Prince Edward Island, replacing Walter Shaw
 * September 1: The CBC becomes the first Canadian television network to broadcast in colour, followed within days by the private-sector CTV Television Network.
 * October 14: Montreal inaugurates its metro system (see Montreal Metro).
 * October 17: The Montreal Metro opens
 * November 4: Bill C-243, The Canadian Forces Reorganization Act, is introduced in Parliament.
 * December 31: The Centennial Flame in front of Parliament Hill is lit
 * The Revolutionary Strategy and the Role of the Avant-Garde outlining the strategy of the FLQ is written.
 * The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program is established.
 * The Medical Care Act is passed, helping set up the Medicare system

Unknown

 * The first Brazilian Carnival Ball is held in Toronto.
 * The Glenbow Museum opens in Calgary.

New works

 * Cold Mountain. Singing Hands Series 3 by B. P. Nichol
 * The Circle Game by Margaret Atwood
 * Expeditions by Margaret Atwood
 * Speeches for Doctor Frankenstein by Margaret Atwood
 * Beautiful Losers by Leonard Cohen

Awards

 * See 1966 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.
 * Stephen Leacock Award: George Bain, Nursery Rhymes to Be Read Aloud by Young Parents with Old Children
 * Vicky Metcalf Award: Fred Savage

Music

 * March 3: Canadian Neil Young, joins Stephen Stills and Richie Furay to form Buffalo Springfield.

Television

 * Star Trek premieres starring Montreal actor William Shatner

Sports

 * January 7 – Gene Kiniski wins his first (and only) NWA World Heavyweight Championship title by defeating Lou Thesz. Kiniski becomes the third Canadian to win the NWA title
 * March 5 – The Toronto Varsity Blues win their first University Cup by defeating the Alberta Golden Bears 8–1, The final game was played at Sudbury Community Arena
 * March 12 – Bobby Hull sets the record for the most goals in a National Hockey League (NHL) season.
 * May 5 – The Montreal Canadiens win their 14th Stanley Cup by defeating the Detroit Red Wings 4 games to 2. Bracebridge, Ontario's Roger Crozier won the Conn Smythe Trophy in a losing effort.
 * May 15 – The Central Alberta Hockey League's Edmonton Oil Kings win their second Memorial Cup by defeating the Ontario Hockey Association's Oshawa Generals 4 games 2. All games were played Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto
 * November 19 – The St. Francis Xavier X-Men win their first Vanier Cup by defeating the Waterloo Lutheran Golden Hawks 40–14 in the 2nd Vanier Cup played at Varsity Stadium in Toronto
 * November 26 – The Saskatchewan Roughriders win their first Grey Cup by defeating the Ottawa Rough Riders 29–14 in the 54th Grey Cup played at Empire Stadium in Vancouver

January to March

 * January 2 – James Cantor, clinical psychologist and sexologist
 * January 14 – Rene Simpson, tennis player (d. 2013)
 * January 23 – Bernadette Bowyer, field hockey player
 * January 24 – Michael Forgeron, rower and Olympic gold medallist
 * January 30 – Doug Wood, pole vaulter
 * February 17 – Luc Robitaille, ice hockey player
 * February 20 – Louis Ferreira, actor
 * February 27 – Donal Logue, actor
 * March 1 – Susan Auch, speed skater and double Olympic silver medallist
 * March 16 – Chrissy Redden, cyclist
 * March 20 – Chris Gifford, field hockey player
 * March 25 – Jeff Healey, jazz and blues-rock guitarist and vocalist (d. 2008)
 * March 25 – David Hohl, wrestler
 * March 29 – Pamela Rai, Olympic swimmer
 * March 31 – Nathalie Gosselin, judoka

April to June

 * April 14 – André Boisclair, politician
 * April 15 – Beverly Thomson, television personality, journalist, and correspondent for CTV Television Network
 * April 19 – David La Haye, actor
 * April 20 – Vincent Riendeau, ice hockey player and coach
 * April 24 – David Usher, rock singer-songwriter
 * May 2 – Belinda Stronach, politician and Minister, businessperson and philanthropist
 * May 11 – Michelle MacPherson, swimmer and Olympic bronze medallist
 * May 12 – Anne Ottenbrite, swimmer and Olympic gold medallist
 * May 23 – Gary Roberts, ice hockey player
 * June 5 – Dwayne Hill, voice actor
 * June 12 – Michael Redhill, poet, playwright and novelist
 * June 18 – Kurt Browning, figure skater and four-time World Champion, choreographer
 * June 24 – Debbie Fuller, diver
 * June 26 – Kirk McLean, ice hockey player
 * June 29 – John Part, darts player
 * June 30 – Peter Outerbridge, actor

July to September

 * August 3 – Brent Butt, comedian and TV producer
 * August 27 – Gianni Vignaduzzi, track cyclist
 * September 10 – Joe Nieuwendyk, ice hockey player and manager
 * September 27 – Gerry Byrne, politician

October to December

 * October 17 – Peter Milkovich, field hockey player and coach
 * October 24 – Conrad Pla, kickboxer and actor
 * October 25 – Wendel Clark, ice hockey player
 * November 8 – Michael Soles, footballer (d. 2021)
 * November 9 – Lisa Faust, field hockey player
 * November 11 – Peaches, musician
 * November 14 – André Gingras, dancer and choreographer (d. 2013)
 * November 16 – Dean McDermott, Canadian-American actor
 * November 21 – Christopher Bowie, swimmer
 * December 1 – Larry Walker, baseball player
 * December 5 – Deb Whitten, field hockey player
 * December 8 – Tyler Mane, actor and wrestler
 * December 10 – Dana Murzyn, ice hockey player
 * December 14 – Bill Ranford, ice hockey player
 * December 19 – Darren Dutchyshen, sportscaster (d. 2024)
 * December 21 – Kiefer Sutherland, actor

Full date unknown

 * Stéphane Demers, actor

Deaths

 * January 22 – Morris Gray, politician (b.1889)
 * February 6 - R.T.M. Scott, author
 * April 8 – Robert Methven Petrie, astronomer (b.1906)
 * July 11 – Andrew McNaughton, army officer, politician and diplomat (b.1887)
 * September 5 – William Murdoch Buchanan, politician (b.1897)
 * September 10 – Blodwen Davies, writer (b.1897)
 * September 15 – Leonard Brockington, lawyer, civil servant and first head of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) (b.1888)
 * October 18 – Elizabeth Arden, businesswoman (b.1884)
 * November 23 - Jean Baptiste Paul, Canadian First Nations wrestler (b.1896)
 * December 2 - Ralph Allen, author and journalist (b.1913)