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Secondary sourceArtifact1917

The Founders of Confederation

1917

A 1917 sepia print with oval portraits of the men who founded Canadian Confederation, including Samuel Leonard Tilley.

A commemorative print including Tilley among the founders of Canadian Confederation.

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Sepia group print titled 'The Founders of Confederation of the Dominion of Canada', showing about 36 oval portraits of men in suits, arranged around a central oval portrait of Sir Etienne-Paschal Taché. Printed text at bottom reads 'Photos Taken During Quebec Conference, Oct. 10-28, 1864'. Caption at lower left reads 'Souvenir Group of Confederation Jubilee 1917'.
The Founders of Confederation, souvenir print, 1917.

About this source

What it is

This is a sepia-toned group print from 1917 titled 'The Founders of Confederation of the Dominion of Canada.' It shows about 36 oval portraits of men arranged around a central portrait of Sir Etienne-Paschal Taché, with text noting the photos were taken during the Quebec Conference of October 1864 and a caption marking it as a souvenir of the 1917 Confederation Jubilee.

Why it matters

Created more than fifty years after Confederation, this print was made to commemorate the anniversary of Canada's founding. It reflects how Canadians in 1917 wanted to remember and honor the delegates, including Samuel Leonard Tilley, as founding figures of the nation.

Look closer

  • Why do you think the print was made as a jubilee souvenir rather than at the time of the conference itself?
  • What does placing one man's portrait in the center suggest about how the makers ranked the delegates?
  • What is lost when individual photographs are combined into a single commemorative composition like this?

This artifact is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Samuel Leonard Tilley on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Black-and-white group photograph of about two dozen men in 19th-century suits and top hats posed on the front steps and lawn of a shingled colonial building with white columns and a fanlight doorway.Photograph

Primary source

Charlottetown Conference Delegates, September 1864

George P. Roberts · September 1864

Title page of an 1867 printed copy of the British North America Act, reading 'An Act of the Imperial Parliament for the Union of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and the Government Thereof', with a royal crest and 'Ottawa: Printed by Hunter, Rose & Co. 1867'.Document

Primary source

Constitution Act, 1867

1867

Black and white studio portrait of a standing man with wavy hair and side whiskers, wearing a dark long coat, waistcoat, and bow tie. His left hand rests on an ornate carved table holding a book and a small carved box. A column and draped backdrop appear behind him, with a carved chair at right.Photograph

Primary source

Portrait of Samuel Leonard Tilley

William Notman · 1864

Black-and-white studio portrait of a seated bearded man with glasses and short hair, wearing a dark coat, vest, and light trousers. He rests one hand on a wooden desk with papers, beside an ornate carved chair, with a draped curtain behind him.Photograph

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Samuel Leonard Tilley, Member of Parliament

William James Topley · February 1869

Sepia daguerreotype-style portrait of a seated young man in a dark suit, waistcoat and cravat, beside a seated woman in a dark dress, white lace bonnet and patterned shawl. Both hands rest in laps.Photograph

Primary source

Tilley et Hanford

before 1862

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