Early Canadian naturalist featured at North Durham Nature meeting

John Sabean portrays early Canadian naturalist Charles Fothergill. Sabean will host a talk with North Durham Nature on April 22. Photo by Mary Cook

Charles Fothergill came to Canada in 1816 with the express purpose of compiling a complete natural history of the British Empire. During the 23 years he spent in Upper Canada he compiled extensive notes on the flora and fauna, and created a museum of stuffed animals, artifacts, and artwork. Had he succeeded in publishing his work he would likely be known today as the Audubon of Canada.

John Sabean will bring to life the natural history work of Charles Fothergill that took place over two hundred years ago. Sabean is a cultural historian with interests in natural history and Canadian art. Trained in medieval and early modern British and European history at the Universities of Chicago and Guelph, he is now a retired professional book editor and spends most of his time writing about local history.

He is a co-founder of both the Pickering Township Historical Society and the Durham West Arts Centre. His published works include: A Boy All Spirit: Thoreau MacDonald in the 1920s (2002); Time Present and Time Past: A Pictorial History of Pickering (2000); and The Travel Journals and Correspondence of Charles Fothergill 1816-1840 (2023).

This talk about the history of Upper Canada’s early naturalist, Charles Fothergill, with guest speaker John Sabean takes place on Tuesday, April 22, at 7 p.m., at the Uxbridge Senior’s Centre (75 Marietta Street, Uxbridge). All are welcome to this presentation.

Visit www.northdurhamnature.com for information about other outings and talks.