Famous 19th Century Canadian Writers

Best known for his iconic war poems such as In Flanders Fields, Canadian poet John McCrae was also an army physician. He was the first Canadian to serve as a consulting surgeon for the British Army and had earned the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Canadian Army.

Robert W. Service was a British-Canadian poet and writer. Popularly called "the Bard of the Yukon," he wrote some of the most commercially successful poetry of his era. A bank clerk by profession, he often wrote while traveling for work. Besides poetry, he also wrote fiction and non-fiction. He was often compared to English writer and novelist Rudyard Kipling. 

Canadian author and social reformer Nellie McClung had struck gold with her first novel, Sowing Seeds in Danny, a bestseller. She also spoke widely about woman suffrage and was part of the Alberta legislature. She was part of The Famous Five, a group of women who launched the Persons Case.

Ernest Thompson Seton was a wildlife artist and author. He is credited with founding a youth program called the Woodcraft Indians in 1902. A pioneer of the Boy Scouts of America, Seton also had a huge influence on the founder of the Scout Movement, Lord Baden-Powell. His life and career inspired several works of art like TV series and literature.

English-Canadian writer Susanna Moodie is best known for her realistic depictions of her life in “the bush” or the wilderness of Canada, which was a British colony back in her time. Her most popular work remains Roughing it in the Bush. She had initially also penned several children’s stories.

Initially a herbalist’s apprentice, Simon Newcomb later deviated to mathematics and astronomy. Born to a schoolteacher, he had loved math since age 5 but wasn’t formally educated. He later joined Harvard University, taught math at the US Navy, detected locations of celestial bodies, and wrote a science-fiction novel, too.

Born into a farming community, Harold Innis was encouraged to be a Baptist minister but became a political economist and academic instead. The former University of Toronto professor is remembered for his work on the staple thesis. He had also fought on the front lines in World War I.

Thomas D'Arcy McGee was an Irish-Canadian politician, Catholic spokesman, journalist, and poet. As a young man, he opposed British rule in Ireland and was in favor of creating an independent Irish Republic. He later became conservative in his beliefs and moved to Canada. He helped create the Canadian Confederation in 1867 but was assassinated the following year.  

Duncan Campbell Scott was a Canadian writer, poet, and civil servant. He is regarded as one of Canada's Confederation Poets. As a civil servant, he served as deputy superintendent of the Department of Indian Affairs. In this position, he supported the implementation of racist policies toward Canada's First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples.  

Bliss Carman was a Canadian poet whose works earned him international recognition. His poem, Autumn ,inspired Leo Sowerby to write Comes Autumn Time, which became his best-known organ piece. Throughout his illustrious career, Carman was honored with many prestigious awards like the Royal Society of Canada's Lorne Pierce Gold Medal. During his later years, Carman served as Canada's poet laureate.

E. J. Pratt was a Canadian poet who won the Governor General's Award, Canada's top poetry prize, on three occasions. Regarded as the most important Canadian poet of his generation, Pratt is also considered the leading Canadian poet of the first half of the 20th century. During his career, he also won other prestigious awards like the Canada Council Medal.

Catharine Parr Traill moved from England to Canada after her marriage and soon became one of the greatest authors of children’s and settlers’ literature of her time. Her writings reflected the charm of the Canadian countryside. Her letters to her mother in England were collated in The Backwoods of Canada.

Archibald Lampman was a 19th-century Canadian poet considered to be the most outstanding exponent of the Canadian school of nature poets. He is often referred to as the “Canadian Keats” and classified as one of Canada's Confederation Poets. He was a quiet and dignified person with high ideals. He passed away at the age of just 37. 

Robert Stanley Weir was a Canadian judge and poet. He is best known for writing the English lyrics to the national anthem of Canada, O Canada. He was trained as a teacher and lawyer. Over the course of his successful legal career, he was appointed a municipal court judge. He published several poems in magazines and book collections. 

Annie Louisa Walker was an English and Canadian teacher and author. Born in England, she moved to Canada as a young girl. She ran a school with her sisters and also embarked on a literary career. With the help of her second cousin, prominent writer Margaret Oliphant, she was able to build a successful career as a novelist. 

Charles Fenerty was a 19th-century Canadian inventor and poet. He is best remembered for inventing the wood pulp process for paper-making. His invention did not receive much attention in his lifetime and he never took out a patent on it. He was well known as a poet and published numerous poems. He was an extensive traveler as well. 

A versatile writer and poet, William Wilfred Campbell began writing poems while in college, continuing to do so while serving as Episcopal priest, publishing his first two books of poems during this period. Later, he gave up his post due to a crisis of faith and continued with his writing, regularly publishing volumes of verses, verse dramas, fictions and non-fictions.

William Henry Drummond was a Canadian poet whose works established him as one of the most famous writers in the West. He is also counted among the most loved and widely-read Canadian poets. The Dr. William Henry Drummond Poetry Contest, which was established in 1970, is conducted in his honor.

Octave Crémazie was a French-Canadian bookseller and poet who played a major role in Quebec's cultural development. Often referred to as the father of French Canadian poetry, Crémazie is best remembered for his patriotic verse. Octave Crémazie is credited with founding an organization called Institut canadien, which aimed at promoting French-Canadian culture.

Isabella Valancy Crawford was a Canadian poet and writer. The author of Malcolm's Katie, a popular poem held in high regard in the history of Canadian poetry, Crawford is widely regarded as Canada's first major poet. She made a living using her skills as a freelance writer, one of the first Canadians to do so.

François-Xavier Garneau was a French Canadian notary, civil servant, poet, and liberal. Garneau is remembered for his contribution to the French-Canadian community, including Histoire du Canada, a three-volume historical account of the French Canadian nation. The Canadian Historical Association created the François-Xavier Garneau Medal, which is given every five years in his honor.

Louis-Honoré Fréchette was a Canadian poet, playwright, short story writer, and politician. Fréchette is the first Quebecer to be honored with the prestigious Montyon Prize, which he received for his work, Les Fleurs boréales, les oiseaux de neige. In 1989, Canada Post honored his contribution by issuing a postage stamp featuring his portrait.

Antoine Gérin-Lajoie was a Québécois Canadian novelist, poet, and attorney. He is credited with writing one of Canada's most famous poems, Un Canadien errant. Antoine Gérin-Lajoie is also credited with founding a couple of literature magazines, namely Le Foyer canadien and Les Soirées canadiennes.

Alexander McLachlan was a Canadian poet who achieved popularity in the mid-19th century. He often wrote in Scottish dialect as he was born in Scotland. Referred to as the Canadian Robert Burns, McLachlan's works reflected the homesickness of Scottish immigrants living in Canada.

Constance Lindsay Skinner was a Canadian writer, historian, critic, and editor. She is best remembered for her contributions to the Rivers of America Series, which was published by Farrar & Rinehart. Constance Lindsay Skinner is also remembered for her novel Good-Morning Rosamond, which was adapted into a three-act comedy.

French-Canadian poet Nérée Beauchemin was a major figure of the Le Terroir, or The Soil, school of poetry. Additionally, he was also a physician. His works mostly featured the Canadian landscape and the rural life of Quebec and its nearby regions, though he only released two poetry volumes throughout his career.

Charles Heavysege was a Canadian dramatist and poet best remembered for his acclaimed play, Saul. He was one of the earliest Canadian poets to publish his works in Canada. Although he was initially known only in Canada, Charles Heavysege had achieved international acclaim by the 1860s.

Canadian writer Eugène Seers, also known as Louis Dantin, is best remembered for editing and publishing the poems of Émile Nelligan. Initially aspiring to be a Roman Catholic priest, he wrote religious poems but quit soon and joined the Harvard University Press. He also gained fame as a skilled essayist.