R.D. Symons
(1898-1973)
R.D. (Robert David) Symons was a Saskatchewan naturalist well known for his nature writing, paintings, and illustrations. He was also a rancher and game warden
Born in England in 1898, Symons was the son of the English painter and professional illustrator, William Christian Symons. He migrated to Canada as a teenager and served in WW I. After the war, he worked as a cowboy and a game warden in Saskatchewan and subsequently ranched in the Peace River region of British Columbia.
As a game officer or warden, he worked in the Battlefords area and later in the Cypress Hills. During his career he managed to uphold the law while at the same time remaining fair to all people with whom he was in contact. He recognized the conditions and living situations of First Nations and Métis peoples on the many reserves in these areas, as well as the importance of treaty rights. However, preservation of wildlife was his priority and he was determined to protect it. Visiting schools to educate children about conservation was also part of his responsibility.
In 1942, Symons was appointed a game warden with the Government of British Columbia and settled on a Northern British Columbia homestead in 1945, returning to Regina in the winter months to paint.
He retired to Silton, Saskatchewan, in 1961, where he continued to lecture on natural history, paint, and write.
Symons produced a number of books - both fiction and reminiscence - in the tradition of English nature writing. Many of his books are cherished as classics. Where the Wagon Led, originally published in 1973, offers a vivid personal account of life on the Canadian prairies before the land was settled for farming. Rich in detail and humour, his stories impart a deep respect and understanding for an environment that is at once frightening and fragile. Other books include Silton Seasons, The Broken Snare, Still the Wind Blows, and Hours and the Birds.
His lush and graphic descriptions of blizzards, storms, drought and other environmental hazards, of the many horses he knew and loved, and of the cowboy's creature comforts, such as a breakfast of hotcakes, bacon, biscuits and syrup before a hard day's work, immerse us in a world long past.
As an artist, he worked primarily on paper, frequently in watercolours, drawing upon direct observation and a prodigious visual memory. Starting in 1951, Symons created many of the dioramas for the habitat exhibits at Regina's Royal Saskatchewan Museum of Natural History.
In 1965, Symons was awarded the Saskatchewan Conservation Medal. In 1970, he was awarded an honourary degree from the University of Regina. He died at Silton in 1973, leaving behind a substantive legacy as a naturalist.
Miko-Peasis (Little Red Bird), an oil on masonite painting by R.D. Symons, was painted in 1959. (Glenbow)