What was the On-to-Ottawa Trek?

The On-to-Ottawa Trek was a protest movement in June and July 1935 in which about 1,500 unemployed men from federal relief camps in British Columbia rode freight trains east toward Ottawa to present their grievances to Prime Minister R.B. Bennett. The Trek was halted at Regina, Saskatchewan by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Regina city police, leading to the Regina Riot of July 1, 1935 in which one police constable was killed and dozens of police and Trekkers were injured.

The Trek arose from grievances at the federal Department of National Defence's relief camps, which had been established in 1932 to house single unemployed men in remote work projects. About 170,000 men passed through the camps over their four-year operation. The camps paid 20 cents per day plus board, prohibited political activity, and were generally viewed by the men as isolating dumping grounds. The Workers' Unity League's Relief Camp Workers' Union (RCWU), founded December 1934, organised demands for higher wages, unemployment insurance, and the right to vote (camp residents could not vote because they had no fixed address).

After a strike of about 1,500 men at British Columbia camps in April 1935, the men gathered in Vancouver to protest. RCWU organisers Arthur Evans, Matt Shaw, and George Black led the men in marches and a brief takeover of the Vancouver City Hall. On June 3, 1935 the Trekkers boarded freight trains heading east. About 1,500 men reached Calgary by June 7 and Regina by June 14, 1935. By Regina, federal police were waiting; Bennett had directed the RCMP to halt the Trek. The trekkers were detained at Regina exhibition grounds while a small delegation went to Ottawa to meet Bennett.

The Ottawa meeting on June 22, 1935 between Bennett's government and the trek delegation was tense and unproductive. Bennett accused the delegation leaders of being communists and refused their demands. Back in Regina, the RCMP attempted to arrest the Trek's leaders during a public rally at Market Square on July 1, 1935 (Dominion Day, today's Canada Day). The Regina Riot followed: the police charged with batons, the Trekkers and bystanders defended themselves, and police fired about 30 rounds. Regina constable Charles Millar was killed (likely by a Trekker), two Trekkers were killed, and dozens on both sides were injured. About 130 Trekkers were arrested. The remaining Trekkers were dispersed by train. The federal relief camps were closed in 1936 by the new Mackenzie King government. The Trek and Regina Riot are commemorated by a monument in Regina (1991) and by Heritage Canada designations as historically significant events.