1817-1906

In English:

Born in England, Kirby came to Canada in 1839 and began work as a tanner in the vicinity of Niagara-on-the-Lake. There he developed his literary talents and soon after moving into the town in 1848 embarked on a long and prolific career as a journalist and writer. Keenly aware of the region's past, he celebrated its traditions in poetry and a history, Annals of Niagara (1896), but it was his interest in French Canadian legends which inspired his most famous work The Golden Dog (1877). The novel made him a national figure and in 1882 he became an original Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

in French:

Nè en Angleterre, Kirby arriva au Canada en 1839. Il travailla comme tanneur dans le banlieue Niagara, où il développa son talent littéraire. Peu après s’être installé dans le ville en 1848, il entreprenit une longue et féconde carrière comme journalist et écrivain. Connaisant tres bien le passé del la région, il célébra ses traditions dans des poèmes et dans une ouvrage historique, Annals of Niagara (1896). Mais son intérêt pour les légendes canadiennes-francaises lui inspera son oevre le plus connue, Le Chien d’Or. Ce roman le rendit célèbre et, en 1882, il fut nommé membre de la Société Royale du Canada.

Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada

Commission des liues et monuments historique du Canada.

Government of Canada • Gouvernement du Canada

Marker is on Queen Street 0.05 kilometers north of King Street.

Courtesy hmdb.org

Credits and Sources: