Introduction

In the terrain that would eventually become the Dominion of Canada, it is not surprising that the literature of exploration was written almost entirely by men. By contrast, canonical narratives of settlement were largely penned by women. From an historical perspective, Central Canada’s settlement literature began with the texts that were written in the first half of the nineteenth century to entice emigrants from the British Isles to the New World. According to Carl F. Klinck, between 1815 and 1840 approximately 100 “travel and emigrant books about Upper Canada” appeared in Britain, of which he distinguishes William Dunlop’s Statistical Sketches of Upper Canada for the use of Emigrants (two editions in 1832 and a third in 1833) as “the most engaging of the lot.” Also popular was John Howison’s much-reprinted Sketches of Upper Canada (1821, 1822, 1825), which integrates advice for prospective emigrants with an account of his own travels and observations. Eyewitness testimonials were considered especially credible, such as T. W. Magrath’s Authentic Letters from Upper Canada (1833), a copy of which was owned by the Moodie family.

The early 1830s saw the appearance of several important works of this nature, including the novels Lawrie Todd; or, The Settlers in the Woods (1830) and Bogle Corbet (1831) by Scottish writer John Galt, which reflect his experience in planning communities under the aegis of the Canada Company in the 1820s, and a tract by William Cattermole, whose recruiting lectures would soon entice John and Susanna Moodie to immigrate to Upper Canada. The generic nature of Cattermole’s Emigration.