In 1867, the British colonies of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia merged to form a new British dominion called "Canada." But "Rupert's Land," the territory initially granted to the Hudson's Bay Company by King Charles II, still remained in the company's control.

Rupert's Land covered a significant part of modern Quebec and Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

Soon, after the company ceded its territorial rights to the newly-formed dominion, industrialization came at a rapid pace. The united colony was quick to begin work on a trans-Canadian railroad, which was completed in 1885.

Watch a movie clip of the delineation of Canadian provinces in RealVideo.