Many people may not know about this, but the defection of a Soviet clerk to Canadian officials is sometimes cited as the triggering event that led to the Cold War. Three short days after the end of World War II in September of 1945, Joseph Gouzenko deserted his position as a Soviet cipher clerk, taking along with him a briefcase of 109 documents regarding Soviet espionage activities in the West!
These events instigated an extensive investigation into Soviet spying by the Canadian government, which arrested over 30 suspects.
Some Cereal and 19 Acres
In the 1950s, Quaker Oats, the breakfast cereal giant, offered their customers one square inch of land in the barren Northern Canadian territory of the Yukon if they purchased a box of their oatmeal cereal. The giveaway became a legal battle for Quaker Oats, with twenty-one million deeds that represented about 19 acres of land, were printed and placed on Quaker Oats cereal boxes across the country.
As we would expect, boxes flew off the shelves, but many didn't even claim their land. As for Quaker Oats, they never paid taxes on the 19 acres, and, alas, the Canadian government claimed it back for a small fee of $37.20 in 1965.
Smugglaroos
The favorite children's snack food Dunk-a-roos were discontinued in the US in 2012, but production continued in Canada— lucky for some Americans who frantically want to get their hands on these treats. A few years ago, General Mills, the producer of Dunk-a-roos, introduced a campaign called "Smugglaroos."
This inspired Canadians who travel to the United States to bring packages of Dunk-a-roos to their American friends. It's only fair seeing as Americans brought Canadians all the weird new flavors of Oreos and Pop-Tarts.
A Button for Effort
Back in World War II, the Canadian military decided to give out buttons to those who had enlisted to join the war effort but who were refused due to various medical reasons.
The purpose of these buttons was to show that these individuals were willing to fight as part of Canada's war effort.
Huge Country, Small Population
Despite being such a huge country, Canada has one of the lowest population density in the world, coming in at fourth, which means there are only three people occupying each square kilometer!
To add to that interesting fact, almost half of the population in Canada were born in other countries.