Canada's Coming of Age: John and Ellen Tracey

The last book in the Tracey family trilogy deals with the lives of the grandchildren of Daniel Tracey, the rebellious spirit who came to Canada from Ireland in the early 1800's. John Tracey lives in the Montreal area during the nefarious Gilded Age brought on by the reckless railroading investment and profiteering in land speculation in The West. He is the hopeless romantic who refutes the cold-blooded profiteering and reckless speculation and joins the union, trying to take the side of the little man struggling to survive and raise a family.
John's sister, Ellen, prim and destined to be an old maid, falls helplessly in love with a married man and in spite of all, pursues her dream of marriage and family, only to have it shattered by a smallpox epidemic.
Set against the historical background of 19th century Canada, this historical fiction book touches on the industrial revolution and the strained relations between England and its colony, struggling for independence.