Anna Louisa Walker
Anna Louisa Walker, later known as Mrs. Harry Coghill, was an English-born writer who made significant contributions to early Canadian literature. Born around 1836 in Staffordshire, England, she moved to Canada as a child when her father was appointed to work on the Grand Trunk Railway. Walker began writing poetry in her teens, and her first collection, "Leaves from the Backwoods," was published in Montreal in 1861, showcasing her sentimental and religious themes. After returning to England, she became close friends with the renowned Scottish writer Margaret Oliphant, with whom she lived for many years following the deaths of her parents. Walker published five novels and a children's playbook during this period, as well as her second poetry volume, "Oak and Maple," in 1890. Following the deaths of both her husband and Oliphant, she took on the role of executor of Oliphant's literary estate, culminating in the publication of "The Autobiography and Letters of Mrs. M. O. Oliphant" in 1899. Walker's literary legacy is marked by her didactic poetry and her efforts to preserve the works of her cousin, providing valuable insight into the experiences of women writers in the 19th century.
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Anna Louisa Walker
- Born: c. 1836
- Birthplace: Staffordshire, England
- Died: 1907
Biography
Anna Louisa Walker, later known as Mrs. Harry Coghill, was born in Staffordshire, England, around 1836. Her father was Robert Walker, a civil engineer, and her mother was Anna Walker. When her father was appointed to work on the Grand Trunk Railway, the family moved to Canada.
Walker began writing poetry as a teenager and some of her poetry was published in Canadian magazines and newspapers. She produced Leaves from the Backwoods, a collection of earlier poems that was published in Montreal in 1861. The poems were sentimental and religious, with many expressing nostalgia for the past and for her home in England.
After this publication, Walker and her family returned to England, where her parents died. In 1865, she wrote to her second cousin, the well-known Scottish writer Margaret Oliphant, and the two women became fast friends. Walker, now orphaned, lived with Oliphant for many years. During this time she published five novels, several set in Canada. In addition, Walker published a book of plays for children in 1876. In 1884, she married Harry Coghill.
In 1890, Walker published her second volume of poetry, Oak and Maple: English and Canadian Verse. At this point, she used the name Mrs. Harry Coghill to identify herself as the writer of these verses. Many of the poems in this volume were reprinted from Leaves from the Backwoods. Again, her poems were didactic and religious in both theme and language.
Walker published a novella, The Trials of Mary Bloom: A Staffordshire Story, in 1894 and a short story, “The Vicar of Moor Edge,” in 1895. Henry Coghill died in 1897, as did Margaret Oliphant. After Oliphant’s death. Walker was named executor of her papers. Perhaps Walker’s most important work was the collection and arrangement of these papers, published as The Autobiography and Letters of Mrs. M. O. Oliphant in 1899.
As a writer, Walker’s achievements include her contributions to early Canadian literature; although her output was small, her poems and novels have historic significance for this reason. Her most important contribution, however, was her editing of her famous cousin’s papers. She provided the world at large some insight into the life of a nineteenth century woman writer.