Ephrem Chouinard

Born in Lévis, Quebec, on April 5, 1854, Éphrem Chouinard left school young and went into business. He worked for the merchant firm Hamel et frères and later traveled to Europe many times as its representative, experiences that gave him a wide view of the world beyond his hometown.

Chouinard eventually turned more fully toward writing and journalism. Sources about his papers note that he founded La Gazette de Québec, which appeared from September 1900 to January 1901, and bibliographic records show that he published poems, speeches, and satirical pieces as well as historical writing.

He is best known today for Petit histoire des grandes rois de Angleterre, a humorous French-language take on English royal history. His surviving works suggest an author who enjoyed mixing learning with mischief, using a light, playful voice to make history and public life more entertaining for readers.