by Judi McWilliams
ELIZABETH SIMCOE - CANADIAN CHRONICLER!
As well as her diaries, it is said that Elizabeth Simcoe produced a large number of water-colours depicting Canadian scenes. They also exist in several versions, from rough sketches made on the spot to finished works which were sent regularly to friends in England. After her return to Wolford, it is said Elizabeth and her daughters made further copies of her Canadian views. While in Canada, she experimented with etching; in her first letter to England she ordered a set of engraving tools, because she had seen Joseph Frederick Wallet DesBarres*’s engravings and was “sure I can engrave to imitate them.” Apparently she etched only two small and not very successful plates, which were sent to England in 1794 and printed in Bristol and London. They say Elizabeth had two motives in her sketching in Canada. One was artistic; she was always looking for good views, and would travel long and arduous distances to find them. The other was documentary; she was intentionally making a pictorial record of what she saw. Quote from Elizabeth … “I took no sketch of a place I never wish to recollect,” she wrote at Cap-de-la-Madeleine. Most of the time, Elizabeth Simcoe was delighted in her Canadian experience. In her diaries and water-colours she has left a lively record of Canada in the 1790s, which is remarkable for its interest, detail, and accuracy.
(To Be Continued)
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