HomeMy WebLinkAbout795"Article taken from _The Beaver_, Feb/Mar, 1988, written by Elaine Theberge.
Fothergill
Canada s Pioneer Naturalist Emerges From Oblivion
By Elaine Theberge
Over 150 years ago, Charles Fothergill, a pioneer naturalist of southern Ontario,
wrote the first nature column to appear in an Upper Canada newspaper. His studies of
animal life were among the earliest in the province, and his paintings and sketches
of birds and animals showed the keenness of his observations.
Fothergill was convinced that the study of nature would result in a deeper understanding
of human life. In his Essay on the Philosophy, Study, and Use of Natural History (1813),
he said:
... The man who surveys the vast field of Nature with an eye of true philosophical inquiry;
who devotes a portion of his time to the studies of the principles which influence,
or govern, the motions of animated beings, however minute they may be, will not only
derive infinite pleasure ... but will gain the only means of discovering the object ...
of his creation. ... But knowledge must be ever progressive .... (man) has no right to
injure or wantonly destroy any animal, as each is a useful link in the vast chain of creation.
To many pioneers, this was a novel idea. To them, trees were to be destroyed to make
room for their homes and fields. This was usually done without regard for the wildlife
inhabitants. A century and a half since Fothergill expressed his philosophy of
conservation, we are still striving to accomplish some of his objectives.
Charles Fothergill's contributions to the life of Upper Canada were also in the fields of
politics, art, and writing. As King's Printer, Member of the House of Assembly, editor of
the Upper Canada Gazette and other papers, and as an artist, he was a figure of
importance in the young nation.
Born in England in 1782, Fothergill was a member of a famous Yorkshire family of
ornithologists, scientists and artists. With such a background it is not surprising that
he was given encouragement when he showed intense interest in nature study.
Before his eighteenth birthday he had published Ornithologia Britannica, listing 301
species of British birds. At the age of twenty-one he wrote The Wanderer: or a
Collection of Original Tales and Essays Founded upon Facts, and ten years later,
his Essay on the Philosophy, Study, and Use of Natural History was published.
Throughout his early life he travelled to remote parts of the British Isles recording his
observations of birds and animals. This work challenged him to seek a wider field for
his investigations, and he decided to write a natural history of the British Empire.
This was at a time when people of the old world were fascinated by early accounts
of the birds and animals of North America, and Fothergill chose this part of the
Empire in which to begin his studies.
In July 1816 Fothergill, with his wife and two infant sons, boarded the sailing ship
William. The eight-week trip across the Atlantic and up the St. Lawrence was evidently
an exciting adventure for the naturalist. While other passengers huddled below deck,
Fothergill was out making weather observations for his diary and, as they sailed into
the Gulf, sketching fishes and birds.
The wild shores and barren mountains of Newfoundland first appeared on 13 August.
Several whales were seen along the coast, and in the air were storm petrels, herring
gulls, auks, and ducks.
When he landed at Quebec, the trees were beginning to change to autumn colours.
Although impatient to begin his observations, he first had to arrange his busi
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"ness affairs at Quebec and Montreal. It was not until early February that he was free to
start his research. Because of the winter season, he resolved to leave his family in
Montreal and to travel to York in Upper Canada, alone and in an open sleigh. In 1817
this was in itself a feat.
The roads were, in many places, little more than wilderness trails cut through dense
forests. For a stranger to the country such a journey required courage and determination.
The way Fothergill looked upon this trip is recorded in the first entry of his Canadian diary.
He wrote with characteristic good humour.
Left Montreal at 10 o'clock this morning, drawn by Young Toby, ridiculed by everyone as
incapable of drawing myself, equipage and luggage to the end of my journey. My carriage,
one of my own invention, built upon a common Canadian traineau (Sleigh) bottom ...
boxed up on the sides and ends and with a locked receptacle for my portmanteau....
The 2 shafts black and the body bright green, inside yellow, total cost including iron work
but exclusive of harness 20 sh[illings].
He and Young Toby bumped along rough, icy tracks, through the unfamiliar countryside:
... The Country is beautiful and romantic even at this season — what might it be in
summer — the wildest and finest scenery I have beheld.
No detail escaped his notice and his account sparkles with observations of birds he
recognized: finches, buntings, blue jays, owls, and tits. He was especially interested in
the Three-toed woodpecker: ""a bird so scarce in Europe.""
After he left Cornwall, a winter storm blanked out the narrow road. Fothergill, bewildered
by the swirling whiteness, his eyes inflamed and almost blinded, his face terribly frozen,
was nearly forced to give up his journey. Young Toby (young in name only), his shoulder
rubbed raw in pulling the sleigh through the ice and snow, was scarcely able to carry on.
With difficulty they continued to Kingston where Fothergill was able to see a doctor.
After a few days rest, and the purchase of a better-fitting harness for his horse, he
continued his journey.
He found more settlements as he travelled along the shoreline of Lake Ontario west of
Kingston, but the road cut through heavy forests which closed about the villages. In the
valley of the Trent River, Fothergill noticed that
The river at its mouth did not appear to me more than a quarter of a mile at the most...
.I crossed it on the ice. Having gained the opposite or Western Bank I descended a
hill and entered into a thick forest of very fine Fir, Pine, Timber trees — some of the
Pines were indeed magnificent from 100 to 180 and occasionally, perhaps to 200
feet in height…. I plainly entered what might strictly be termed alluvial lands with
considerable and regular
Charles Fothergill, The Bridge Over Smith's Creek. Port Hope, water colour over
pencil. 1819."
"undulation and a sandy soil. Tracks of wild animals numerous .... the road was
very rough and bad owing to the drifting snow and fallen trees.
When he reached the village of Smith's Creek, his interest in the countryside deepened.
In spite of the greater part of the coast being ""one continual forest"", he saw the
possibility of an excellent harbour being made, where lake schooners could come in.
There were about fifteen houses, two of which were inns. He stopped at Choat's Inn,
in the village that would later become his home.
A severe storm made it impossible to proceed with his trip westward, so he spent
several days exploring the region north of the village.
Black squirrels are not uncommon in this neighbourhood…. An evening walk in a
Canadian Forest
when the weather is gloomy produces striking and solemn effects on the mind as
the wind rises in deep long-drawn sighs through lofty tops of the pines ... sometimes
rising to a deep howl whilst the falling of ancient trunks no longer able to bear the storm
crashing down others in their way creates a noise which can be heard reverberated in
echoes from the depth of the forest on every side.
On his second day at Smith's Creek, he rode his horse to Rice Lake. He found no
farms farther than six miles from Lake Ontario, and there were very few settlers even
closer to the village. The twelve miles to Rice Lake varied from deep forest to some
open areas. He lost his way several times but reached the lake in the late afternoon;
he noted in his diary that it was a ""vast uninhabited solitude, an extraordinary silence
prevailed"". The potential for settlement of the area was uppermost in his mind as he
retraced his way to Smith's Creek in the growing darkness.
He resumed his journey to York (Toronto), and one month after leaving Montreal,
he crossed the Don River and entered what he called
this miserable apology for a metropolis consisting of about a Dozen houses
clustered about Jordan's Inn called the York City Hotel — found it tolerably
comfortable.
One of the other guests at the hotel described him as ""tall, dark, handsome,
well-educated"".
Fothergill lost no time applying (March 1817) to Lt. Gov. Sir Francis Gore for
1200 acres of land on the south shore of Rice Lake near the mouth of the Otonabee
River. He stated that this would be valuable for back country settlement, with water
communication to Lake Ontario by means of Smith's Creek where an excellent harbour
could be located.
Before the end of 1817 Fothergill had established his home near Smith's Creek.
He was the first postmaster of this village which was called Toronto until 16 June 1819,
when John Beverley Robinson, Attorney General, issued a notice giving it the name of
Port Hope.
Shortly after he was made postmaster, he was appointed to the Land Board for the
District of Newcastle. His next political appointment was that of King's
Portrait of Charles Fothergill. aged 53.
Red-breasted Nuthatch {above} and Peregrine Falcon (across), painted
by Fothergill. A Red-breasted Nuthatch was blown into the shrouds
of the sailing ship William in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and was
sketched by Fothergill.
Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, University of Toronto
"
"Printer in 1822. At the same time, he became editor of the Upper Canada Gazette and
the Weekly Register. The first nature column to appear in a Canadian newspaper was
written by Fothergill for the Weekly Register.
Three years after he became King's Printer he was elected to represent the County of
Durham in the House of Assembly during the 9th and 10th Parliaments of Upper Canada.
He aligned himself with the moderate reformers.
In several areas he moved ahead of his times: he originated a bill for the establishment
of Agricultural Societies in Upper Canada; he wished to establish a museum to
safeguard specimens of natural history; and forty-two years before Confederation he
proposed the establishment of a federal government in Canada. He founded the first
Literary and Historical Society in Upper Canada.
Although he pushed forward ideas which he thought advanced the development of the
country, he did not
hesitate to express opposition to measures he considered radical. He voted against
the government on one such occasion and was dismissed from his office as King's
Printer. It was an anomaly to permit the King's Printer to hold a seat in the Legislative
Assembly.
His political activities did not distract him from his main interest — to record and
preserve the natural history of the country through his writings, paintings, and the
acquisition of specimens of mammals and birds.
He wrote A Sketch of the state of Upper Canada, (York, U.C., 1822), and in 1831
he started contributing a nature column to the Cobourg Star and Newcastle Advertiser.
These were signed ""Atticus"" and the source of much of the material was the
countryside around his property on Rice Lake. Here he had built a lodge on a
beautiful point near the mouth of the Otonabee River. He named the house Castle
Fothergill, and the location was known as Fothergill Point
A While-fronted Tern. Fothergill's bird pictures are noted for their clarity and detail.
"
"until 1897, when it was changed to ""Jubilee Point"" in honour of Queen Victoria's
jubilee.
Because of his busy life, Fothergill and his family divided their time between their place
on Rice Lake, their home in Port Hope, and a residence in York. Fothergill's first wife
died in 1822. In 1825 he married Eliza Richardson. They had seven children in addition
to three sons from the former marriage.
Fothergill's writings reflect his ability to make detailed observations, his keen attention
to minutiae, and his ability to express his own pleasure in his work. One of his ""Atticus""
articles was about bullfrogs:
Bullfrogs are very numerous and formidable about Rice Lake. The noise they make in
the still nights previous to rain or thunder and lightening is really tremendous and may
be compared to the bellowings of a thousand bulls.
He watched a Pileated Woodpecker working on a hemlock tree. He estimated that the
bark that was removed in from ten to fifteen minutes would fill a half-bushel basket.
The subjects for his newspaper articles ranged from flying squirrels to the habits of mud
turtles. He wrote an essay on the mammals of Canada in which he described 168
species. The Natural History Society of Montreal awarded a silver medal to him for
this work.
Paintings by Fothergill are of value from an historical viewpoint. Port Hope in 1819 is
thought to be the earliest known picture of that area. His watercolour subjects covered
many birds and mammals. The first organization of artists in Upper Canada (Toronto
Society of Artists) was begun in 1834. The members were both professional and
amateur, and included among them were Paul Kane, Captain Bonnycastle,
and Charles Fothergill. The catalogue listed 196 pictures, contributed by thirteen
associated artists and eleven honorary exhibitors. Fothergill exhibited ten watercolours.
An important part of his nature work was collecting and preserving specimens of
mammals and birds. He intended this collection to form the nucleus of a museum of
natural history such as those he had seen on visits to Philadelphia and New York.
In 1830, and again in 1835, he spearheaded proposals for a ""Lyceum of Natural
History and the Fine Arts in the City of Toronto, Upper Canada"".
The period has arrived when the Province of Upper Canada should take its proper
station amongst the enlightened communities of North America by forming an
exhibition of its resources and a display of natural production. It is the only large
section of the continent without its public museum and place to deposit specimens of
Natural History.... Too much cannot be said in praise of the study of Natural History....
It is gratifying to notice that in all parts of the civilizced world men are becoming more
Charles Folhergill. The Log House on Rice Lake. 1819.
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"and more attached to the pursuits of nature ... and it is greatly hoped that Upper
Canada, so richly endowed, will no longer remain without its Public Institute of Natural
History.
In anticipation of government support, Fothergill rented space in Chewett's Building on
King Street in which to store his specimens of birds and mammals, as well as some of
his paintings. Other contributors were urged to bring to these temporary quarters any
specimens they wished to donate.
The project to build the museum had the support of Lieutenant Governor Sir John
Colborne and his successor, Sir Francis Bond Head. A grant of land was given for the
building and grounds on the Government Reserve between the Garrison and Farr's
Brewery. In today's city, this would be on the south side of Queen Street near Strachan
Avenue. Plans for the building were ambitious and the structure was to be patterned after
the Parthenon in Athens. An effort was made to raise money by subscription, and funds
were secured for all but two thousand dollars of the cost of the building. The project had to
be abandoned.
An early historian, Henry Scadding (Toronto of Old) said that ""... (the museum) was
probably too bold in its conception and too advanced to be justly appreciated. ...
Mr. Fothergill was a man of great intelligence ... and an experienced naturalist.""
Scadding recounts seeing works by the English naturalist Thomas Bewick that
included a Horned Owl which was drawn from a specimen supplied by Charles
Fothergill.
Unfortunately, most of Fothergill's remarkable collection of natural history specimens
was destroyed by fire shortly after his death. In his plans for a provincial museum he
was a man ahead of his time and it was left to others to make his dream come true.
Charles Fothergill died in 1840. Most of the manuscripts which formed the important
part of his work were, for many years, believed lost and were only located after 1931.
It was then that his contribution to the study of natural history was revealed. Ten years
later, an article in the Canadian Historical Review (December 1944) by ornithologist
James Baillie brought to the attention of the public the work of Fothergill as a naturalist.
Mr. Baillie said that there was no question that Fothergill was
... the pioneer naturalist of southern Ontario and the care with which he made his notes
stamps him as one of the most important of the early naturalists of Canada.
The difficulties under which he laboured must have been tremendous.
There was little literature pertaining to Canadian animals, he did not have the
advantage of kindred souls with whom to associate, he lacked camera and binoculars,
and his means of transportation would be limited to horse (and buggy or sleigh), boat,
or foot.
Fothergill's Canadian descriptions concern 186 birds, 105 mammals, 27 fishes,
15 reptiles, and 2 amphibians. These notes are found in sixteen holograph manuscript
volumes which were located between 1931 and 1944. Several other volumes have
been found since that date and all are now in archives and libraries. It was Baillie's
opinion that since Fothergill's work came to light at such a late date, he did not
""influence the development of natural history studies in Ontario. Potentially, however,
he was of great importance. As a naturalist, and illustrator of animals, he ranked with
the best of his period"".
Although prominent as a legislator, newspaper publisher, and artist, it is in the field of
natural history that Charles Fothergill deserves to be best remembered.
Today's naturalist will recognize his philosophy of man's place in nature as he
expressed it so well in his early writings:
It should be an important object in the pursuit of Natural History to ascertain the true
relation which one animal bears to another, and their utility in the great scale of
creation. A knowledge which can only be obtained by long observation and unwearied
investigation.
Elaine Theberge is an Oshawa freelance writer. She is co-author, with her husband,
of several works on Canadian history.
A surviving case of Fothergill's birds.
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