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Dates of creation area
Date(s)
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1930 - 1931 (Creation)
Physical description area
Physical description
Approximately 5 cm of textual records.
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Archival description area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Sanna Kannasto was born in Ylihärmä, Finland, and educated at Finlandia University. In 1899, she immigrated to the United States and continued her education at Suomi College in Hancock, Michigan. By 1901, she had relocated to Port Arthur, Ontario, Canada. Kannasto assisted in founding the Canadan Suomalainen Järjestö (Finnish Organization of Canada (FOC)) and worked closely within the organization.
Kannasto, and the FOC, were associated with the Socialist Party of Canada (1904-1925) and the Socialist Democratic Party (1911). Kannasto worked as an organizer, encouraging Finnish Canadians to join the Socialist Party of Canada and the FOC. She traveled across the nation gathering support, and fought for workers' and women’s rights in Northwestern Ontario. Kannasto particularly raised awareness of women’s rights in labour, marital issues, and contraception.
Kannasto was considered a threat to Canada by the RCMP. She was arrested in the early 1920s trying to reach Alberta (Canada), and in 1925 trying to reach Montana (United States). Due to government aggression, by the mid-1930s Kannasto retreated from her political pursuits. Kannasto spent her remaining decades working on a homestead just outside of Port Arthur.
Sources
- Lakehead University. Sanna Kannasto Fonds. https://archives.lakeheadu.ca/index.php/sanna-kannasto-fonds
- Wikipedia. Sanna Kannasto. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanna_Kannasto
Custodial history
Records were found on Kannasto's former farm property in the North Branch area, near Thunder Bay, in 2024, and donated to the Archives at that time.
Scope and content
Records created and kept by Sanna Kannasto, from the years 1930-1931. Includes minutes of District 6 (Northwestern Ontario) of the Työlais Naisten Liiitto (T.N.L.), Working Women's League, of which Kannasto was secretary. Also includes correspondence; writings on how to run meetings and how to establish a co-operative; and material produced by other organizations such as the Workers' Unity League of Canada.
Sanna Kannasto (1878-1968) was a Finnish socialist organizer and feminist active in Port Arthur and Northwestern Ontario for much of her life. She was associated with the Canadan Suomalainen Järjestö / Finnish Organization of Canada, and travelled, speaking to workers and women across Northwestern Ontario.
These records provide a small window onto Kannasto's activities in 1930-1931. They may have been hidden intentionally due to RCMP interference in her work.
Notes area
Physical condition
Some records are in extremely poor physical condition and showing rodent damage.
Immediate source of acquisition
Arrangement
As records arrived in no discernable order, an arrangement was performed as part of processing.
Language of material
English
Finnish
Script of material
Language and script note
Most records in Finnish.
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No restrictions on access.
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Credits note
Arrangement and description of documents with thanks to Jorma Halonen and Anneli Tolvanen.
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Name access points
- Kannasto, Sanna (Subject)
- Canadan Suomalainen Järjestö (Subject)
- Workers' Unity League (Subject)
- Canadian Labour Defence League (Subject)
- Communist Party of Canada (Subject)
