This is a reprint of an article first printed on July 1, 2021. Hopefully we’ll be seeing some of these wildflowers shortly.

This year’s Canada Day celebrations on July 1 may be more subdued than usual because of the pandemic. However, Canadians can still go outdoors and enjoy the beauty of the landscape. Before embarking on a trek into the forest, consider browsing through Canadian Wild Flowers, written by Catharine Parr Traill (1802-1899) and beautifully illustrated by artist Agnes Dunbar Moodie Fitzgibbon (1833-1913). Published in 1868, Canadian Wild Flowers is considered one of the first serious Canadian botanical works. It describes thirty different wildflowers displayed together in ten colour plates. The illustration above shows the Harebell (Campánula Rotundifòlia), the Showy Lady’s Slipper (Cypripèdium Spectàbile) and the Wild Orange Red Lily (Lílium Philadélphicum).

Here at Faded Page, we have a number of books by Catharine Parr Traill who wrote extensively about everyday life in early Canada. Traill comes from a family of writers. Her sister Susanna Moodie, well known for Roughing it in the Bush, is the mother of Fitzgibbon, the illustrator of Canadian Wild Flowers.

If you like what we do here on Faded Page and want to help us add even more public domain books to the site, come join us and proofread a few pages. For more information about how to volunteer, check out our companion site, Distributed Proofreaders Canada.