Congratulations Dr. Margaret Anne Lindsay! Winner of the CSN Prize - Best PhD Dissertation in Canadian Studies

Dr. Margaret Anne Lindsay (Department of History, University of Manitoba)
"Especially in this Free Country: Webs of Empire, Slavery and the Fur Trade"

Dr. Lindsay’s dissertation makes a critical contribution to our growing recognition of the historical existence of slavery in Canada by demonstrating that chattel slavery existed in the North American fur trade, was practiced in New France, and was utilized by the Hudson’s Bay Company throughout its territories. Drawing on a remarkable range of archival and printed material from Canada and Great Britain, her research skillfully reveals the interconnectedness of empire by demonstrating that, in terms of the violence of unfree labour, Canada was neither exceptional nor isolated from the rest of the British Empire. She painstakingly unearths the webs of direct relationships between families and businesses that linked the values, culture, beliefs, and expectations of wealthy and prominent British families to West Indies plantation owners, and to agents in the fur trade. Through a thorough command of the relevant historiography and a clear understanding of the significance of her findings, Dr. Lindsay presents an important corrective to popular mythologies that are deeply ingrained in Canadian national identity.