Actually the exact opposite is true. The CDN$ historically has traded below par. As recently as 2001 the CDN$ traded as low as 66 cents US.
Led by a right-of-center government Canada has outperformed those (other) economies over the past several years and its sound approach has been appreciated by voters who recently reelected the Conservatives. The market now appears to be signaling its satisfaction with the Conservatives as well.
Maybe. But, on a more basic level Canada has plentiful domestic energy and agricultural resources. In other words we can feed ourselves, run our industries, heat our homes, and drive our cars without relying on foreign suppliers. A relatively low corporate tax rate might also have something to do with it.
It’s a little difficult to quickly find pre-1950 records. But it appears that the Canadian dollar was higher than the USD about half of the time between 1950 and 1977. Looks like the loonie was lower with expansions in US “free trade” until recently.
History of the Canadian dollar - CBC.ca
http://www.cbc.ca/news/interactives/map-history-dollar/
Which is the natural process of globalism in business. Trade imbalance beneficiaries were bound to eventually inflate (more jobs, production and real wealth per capita in those countries, etc.), causing their products to cost more to both them and Americans in the US. Net energy exporters like Canada will also increase with energy resources more in demand, and energy prices, rising.
It’s going to get more interesting, as yet more enormous numbers of people in other countries consume more oil (new drivers and users of many products).