The Key to the City is an award presented by a town or city's municipal government to esteemed residents or visitors whom the city wishes to honour. The award, usually an ornamental key, is generally presented by the mayor or some other public figure at an award ceremony. Some cities allow visiting celebrities to request that a key be granted to them, a practice which has resulted in some controversy.
The local equivalent is the White Hat Ceremony, which was begun in the 1950s by Mayor Don MacKay. The first white hat was given to the Mayor of Toronto, Hiram E. McCallum, as thanks for his hosting during the 36th Grey Cup (1948). The honour can be requested through Tourism Calgary. Past recipients include:
1969: Karol Wojtyła, Archbishop of Kraków (later elected Pope John Paul II)
1969: Prince Philip
1977: Prince Charles and Prince Andrew
July 9, 2001: Ralph Goodale, Minister of Natural Resources from 1997 to 2002, and Ernesto Martens, Mexico's Secretary of Energy
June 27, 2002: The eight world leaders attending the 28th G8 summit – Tony Blair, Jacques Chirac, Vladimir Putin, Gerhard Schröder, Silvio Berlusconi, Junichiro Koizumi, Jean Chrétien, and George W. Bush
March 3, 2003: Phil McGraw, as "Dr. Phil"
March 16, 2005: Dave Bautista and Chris Benoit, WWE wrestlers
June 4, 2006: Prince Edward
July 25, 2008: Ozzy Osbourne, rock performer, and Sharon Osbourne, music producer
July 2009: David Petraeus, U.S. General
September 30, 2009: Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama
October 13, 2009: David Jacobson, U.S. Ambassador to Canada
December 4, 2009: Tommy Chong
May 13, 2010: Princess Margriet of the Netherlands
June 19, 2011: William Shatner, Canadian actor, musician, singer, author, film director, spokesman and comedian
July 7, 2011: Prince William and Kate Middleton, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge
November 3, 2012: Tommy Tallarico, creator of Video Games Live, Laura Intravia, singer-flutist, and Christopher Tin, composer
September 24, 2015: Trooper, Canadian rock band
Robert Duvall
Kevin Costner
Luciano Pavarotti
Oprah Winfrey
Wayne Gretzky, Canadian Hockey Player.
Municipalities in British Columbia grant the Freedom of the City, rather than a Key, to individuals worthy of recognition. In accordance with Section 158 of the Community Charter, potential recipients must receive the unanimous support of the city council before they are granted the Freedom, which is then usually bestowed upon them during a special ceremony.
In the following list, where the date of the award ceremony is unknown, the date of the council resolution is given instead. These dates are marked with (res.).
June 14, 1968: George Pearkes, 20th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
April 14, 1978: Bob Prittie, former mayor of Burnaby
April 3, 1987: Eileen Dailly, former Deputy Premier and Minister of Education
April 6, 1990: James Gibson Lorimer, politician
2010: Michael J. Fox, actor
March 21, 1966 (res.): George Pearkes, 20th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
September 13, 1966 (res.): Jack Loutet, former mayor of North Vancouver
March 4, 1968 (res.): Nancy Greene, alpine skier
January 18, 1971 (res.): John Henry Cates, Canadian MLA, and his wife, Carrie, a former mayor
April 8, 2002 (res.): Ray Perrault, former Senator
June 14, 2010: Lauren Woolstencroft, Paralympic skier
March 3, 1973: Karen Magnussen, World Figure Skating Champion
June 9, 2008: Don Bell, former mayor
The City of Kelowna Awards The Freedom of the City Instead of a Key.
December 8, 1952: W. A. C. Bennett, 25th Premier of British Columbia
Unless otherwise specified, the source of the items on this list is the City of Vancouver's official website.
August 28, 1936: Edward Wentworth Beatty, President of the Canadian Pacific Railway
April 11, 1938: Lauchlan Alexander Hamilton, civil engineer and Alderman
January 4, 1939 (res.): R. B. Bennett, 11th Prime Minister of Canada
June 30, 1941 (res.): William Lyon Mackenzie King, 10th Prime Minister of Canada
September 29, 1941 (res.): Eric Hamber, 15th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
January 2, 1946 (res.): Harry Crerar, military general
December 23, 1946 (res.): William Culham Woodward, 16th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
March 17, 1947 (res.): William Harold Malkin, 21st Mayor of Vancouver
November 3, 1949: Jawaharlal Nehru, Prime Minister of India
December 1, 1952 (res.): George Clark Miller, 23rd Mayor of Vancouver
November 16, 1953 (res.): J. S. Matthews, archivist and historian
December 17, 1963 (res.): Jonathan Webster Cornett, 25th Mayor of Vancouver
December 17, 1963 (res.): George T. Cunningham, founder of the pharmacy chain Cunningham's
December 30, 1963 (res.): Frederick Hume, 28th Mayor of Vancouver
December 29, 1964 (res.): Charles Edwin Thompson, 27th Mayor of Vancouver
December 29, 1964 (res.): Henry Herbert Stevens, politician and businessman
February 17, 1965 (res.): W. A. C. Bennett, Premier of British Columbia
December 29, 1965 (res.): Arnold Webster, politician
December 20, 1966 (res.): H. R. MacMillan, Chair of the Vancouver Board of Trade
January 16, 1968 (res.): Frank Mackenzie Ross, 19th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
August 27, 1968 (res.): George Pearkes, 20th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
October 1, 1968 (res.): William Mark Duke, former Archbishop of Vancouver
December 17, 1968 (res.): Clarence Wallace, 18th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
December 16, 1970 (res.): Prentice Bloedel, creator of the Bloedel Reserve
January 11, 1972 (res.): Howard Charles Green, politician
January 11, 1972 (res.): Whitford Julian VanDusen, businessman and philanthropist
April 10, 1973 (res.): Harold Edward Winch, politician and former Leader of the Opposition
July 23, 1974 (res.): Grace MacInnis, politician
August 27, 1974 (res.): Arthur Laing, former leader of the British Columbia Liberal Party
December 17, 1976 (res.): John Robert Nicholson, 21st Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
March 14, 1978 (res.): Jean Coulthard, composer
April 24, 1979 (res.): Jack Diamond, businessman and philanthropist
July 29, 1980 (res.): Joseph H. Cohen, businessman and philanthropist
June 11, 1985 (res.): John Lecky, Olympic rower
January 7, 1986 (res.): Henry Pybus Bell-Irving, 23rd Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
January 7, 1986 (res.): Walter Koerner, businessman and philanthropist
March 24, 1987 (res.): Rick Hansen, Paralympian
April 29, 1988: Cecil Howard Green, geophysicist and Texas Instruments founder
July 12, 1988 (res.): Nathaniel Nemetz, lawyer and judge
February 4, 1989: Jack Shadbolt, artist
June 16, 1992 (res.): Thomas R. Berger, politician and jurist
September 2, 1993 (res.): The Vancouver Foundation
September 28, 1993 (res.): David Lam, 25th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
April 12, 1994: George Woodcock, author and critic
May 28, 2002 (res.): Arthur Erickson, architect
November 5, 2002 (res.): Kim Campbell, 19th Prime Minister of Canada
October 6, 2005 (res.): Dal Richards, musician
July 6, 2010: Art Phillips, 32nd Mayor of Vancouver
February 23, 2011: Jim Green, councillor
July 12, 2011: Milton Wong, businessman and philanthropist
October 30, 2015: Dr. David Suzuki CC OBC, Canadian academic, science broadcaster and environmental activist.
November 8 2016: Margaret Mitchell OBC, Canadian Politician and Vancouver East MP 1979-1993.
February 28 2017: Michael Harcourt, Mayor of Vancouver 1981-1986 Premier of British Columbia 1991-1996.
March 9, 1927: Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 13th Governor General of Canada
June 19, 1928: Robert Pim Butchart, founder of Butchart Gardens
February 5, 1959: Frank Mackenzie Ross, 19th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
November 19, 1965: George Pearkes, 20th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
October 13, 1966: Robert Mayhew, businessman and politician
October 15, 1970: W. A. C. Bennett, Premier of British Columbia
May 31, 1990 (res.): Pierre Savard, former mayor of Verdun
September 8, 2003 (res.): Allan Williams, former Attorney General of British Columbia
October 5, 2009: Gordon A. Smith, artist
2002: Shannen Doherty, actress
2002: Shirley MacLaine, actress
August 24, 2007: Milt Stegall, football player for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers
December 3, 2008: Bob Geldof, musician-activist
March 14, 2010: Jon Montgomery, Olympian
March 28, 2010: Henry Winkler, actor
July 11, 2010: Jonathan Toews
June 15, 2011: Gene Simmons, KISS rocker, during his visit for a question-and-answer event at the Centennial Concert Hall
September 12, 2011: Steve Nash
October 19, 2012: Twyla Tharp, choreographer
August 12, 2013: Paul McCartney, musician
October 21, 2016: Teemu Selanne , NHL Player
May 18, 1933: R. B. Bennett, 11th Prime Minister of Canada
St. John's Awards the Freedom of the City Rather than a Key.
May 22, 1968: Bernard Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein
October 10, 1970: Irish Ambassador Joseph Shields, Alderman D.C. MacLean, Provost of Ayr, Scotland, Alan O. Will, OBE of Bristol, England, Henry G.R. Mews
August 31, 1977: Andrew Crosbie
September 11, 1997: Paul Johnson
May 28, 2000: Drum Major William Tilley, Major Walter Learning, CM, Colonel Adrian Heffernan
May 12, 2001: World Junior Championship Curling Team (Brad Gushue, Mark Nichols, Brent Hamilton, Mike Adam, Jamie Korab, Jeff Thomas)
November 15, 2004: Dr. Paul O'Neill
September 30, 2008: Dr. Nigel Rusted
June 24, 2010: John J. Murphy
May 19, 2016: Elinor Gill Ratcliffe CM ONL, Canadian Philanthropist.
July 31, 2011: Tyler Seguin, after his Stanley Cup win
September 11, 2011: Russell Peters, Brampton-raised comedian, during the premiere party for the film Breakaway
September 11, 2011: Akshay Kumar, Bollywood actor, during the premiere party for the film Breakaway
June 16, 2013: George "Potsy" Burrows, Brampton war veteran, Ontario Lacrosse Hall of Fame inductee, and 1997 Brampton Citizen of the Year
July 1, 2013: Anthony Bennett, Brampton-raised basketball player, after being drafted first overall in the 2013 NBA Draft.
Previously, the Corporate Calling Committee had a "Key to the City", to give to "thank the local businesses by giving them a token of the City’s appreciation". Michael Collins of the Brampton Real Estate Board resigned later that meeting, and was presented with the first token.
June 18, 2013: Vicki Keith, marathon swimmer
February 4, 2014: 424 Squadron SAR crew
December 7, 2016: Arthur B. McDonald, for his contributions to modern physics and the Kingston community
Walter Kawiecki, for work with Civitan Club
November 4, 1935: John Buchan and Susan Buchan (Lord and Lady Tweedsmuir)
March 9, 1948: Barbara Ann Scott, after winning the figure skating gold medal at the 1948 Summer Olympics
September 8, 1951: Denys Lowson, Lord Mayor of London
October 12, 1951: HRH Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, current Queen of the United Kingdom, four months before her accession to the throne
February 9, 1952: Harold Alexander, the Governor General of Canada, upon leaving office
1954: HM Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, Former Royal Consort and Mother to Queen Elizabeth II.
October 5, 1955: Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent and eight provincial premiers – Leslie Frost (Ontario), Maurice Duplessis (Quebec), W. A. C. Bennett (British Columbia), Hugh John Flemming (New Brunswick), Douglas Lloyd Campbell (Manitoba), Henry Hicks (Nova Scotia), Alexander Wallace Matheson (Prince Edward Island), and Ernest Manning (Alberta) – during a First Ministers' conference
December 12, 1956: George A. Drew, former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party, upon his retirement
April 7, 1961: Harold Macmillan, former British Prime Minister
August 1974: Rich Little, impressionist
December 10, 1984: Marc Garneau, the first Canadian in space
October 13, 1994: Dan Aykroyd, comedian and actor
March 8, 1996: Alanis Morissette, musician
May 16, 2006: Dominic D'Arcy, the "Singing Policeman"
May 29, 2007: The Commanding Officer of HMCS Ottawa
July 8, 2013: Sandra Oh, actor
March 5, 2015: Daniel Alfredsson, retired Ottawa Senators captain
30 June 2014: Corey Perry, Canadian Hockey Player
1947: Barbara Ann Scott
Shania Twain, Canadian Singer.
June 7, 1998: Mickey Rooney
July 26, 1998: Ed Mirvish
1998: Bobby Curtola
1998: Sheldon Kennedy
1998: Bobby Rahal
1998: Charles Adler
1998: Nelson Mandela
1998: Barbara Ann Scott-King
1998: Johnny Lombardi
April 15, 1999: Norman Jewison
September 17, 1999: Celine Dion
October 5, 1999: Joe Foti
1999: Yo-Yo Ma
1999: David L. Gunn
1999: Mickey Mouse
February 29, 2000: David Boothby, Chief of Police
March 30, 2000: Neil Young and Donald Sutherland
September 21, 2000: Barenaked Ladies, a Canadian pop band
October 23, 2000: J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series of books
2000: Sharon, Lois & Bram
2000: Archbishop Desmond Tutu
2000: Constantinos Stephanopoulos, President of the Hellenic Republic of Greece
2000: Pramukh Swami Maharaj
October 16, 2001: Margaret Atwood and Joni Mitchell
November 18, 2001: Jackie Chan, action movie star, during a charity event
December 2001: Blue Rodeo, a Canadian alt-country band
2001: Boris Spremo
2001: Constantine II of Greece
2001: Sylvester Stallone
2001: Sophia Loren
2002: Tiger Woods
July 31, 2002: Thomas Rosica
October 4, 2002: Ronnie Hawkins
2002: Muhammad Ali
September 19, 2003: Nickelback
June 25, 2003: Mike Myers
July 28, 2003: The people of Prince Edward Island
July 28, 2003: The Rolling Stones
July 31, 2003: Anson Carter
2003: Case Ootes, deputy mayor
April 14, 2005: Julian Fantino, former Police Chief
October 23, 2010: Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama
June 21, 2012: George Cohon, founder of McDonald's in Canada
March 26, 2013: George Chuvalo, Canadian heavyweight boxer
August 20, 2013: Doug Holyday, former deputy mayor
February 12, 2016: Drake, Toronto native rapper
May 9, 2009: Windsor Spitfires Major Junior ice hockey team, for winning the J. Ross Robertson Cup
July 1, 2010: Joel Quenneville, Stanley Cup Winning NHL Head Coach.
November 7, 2012: Richie Hawtin, English-Canadian Electronic Musician.
November 17, 2014: Eddie Francis, Mayor of Windsor.
Jimmy Carter, Former President of the United States.
Bill Clinton, Former President of the United States.
Roger Penske, Auto Racing Team Owner.
HRH Prince Michael of Kent, Member of the British Royal Family.
June 27, 2010: 883 Air Commodore Leonard Birchall Air Cadet Squadron and 351 Silverstar Air Cadet Squadron
1999: Céline Dion
2005: Sœur Angèle, celebrity chef.
2011: Anthony Calvillo, Montreal Alouettes Quarterback.
2014: Michel Drucker, French TV host.
2015: Raymond Benjamin, secretary general of the International Civil Aviation Organization.
2015: Al Pacino
2016: William Shatner
October 2014: Weston Dressler, Saskatchewan Roughriders Player and Grey Cup Champion.
