author
Edward Burrough Brownlow
1857–1895
A late-19th-century poet with a gift for myth, music, and melancholy, this London-born writer became part of Montreal’s literary life before his work was gathered after his early death. His poems range across classical subjects, nature, and feeling, with a thoughtful, lyrical tone.
1 Audiobook
Orpheus and Other Poems
by Edward Burrough Brownlow
About the author
Born in London on November 27, 1857, Edward Burrough Brownlow later made his life in Montreal, where he worked for several years as a bank clerk and was well known in local literary circles. He also edited Arcadia, a short-lived fortnightly publication devoted to literature and art.
Brownlow is best remembered for Orpheus and Other Poems, a collection published in Montreal by the Pen and Pencil Club in 1896, after his death. The volume was issued in his memory by fellow members of the club and shows his taste for classical themes alongside poems shaped by reflection, emotion, and a strong ear for lyrical language.
He died in Montreal on September 8, 1895, at just 37 years old. Although he remains a relatively little-known figure, his surviving work offers a glimpse of a poet who was closely tied to the cultural world of his adopted city.