The Song Fishermen, or the Song Fishermen's Circle (1928–1930), was an informal group of poets from Atlantic Canada that included the famous Canadian poets
Bliss Carman
William Bliss Carman (April 15, 1861 – June 8, 1929) was a Canadian poet who lived most of his life in the United States, where he achieved international fame. He was acclaimed as Canada's poet laureate during his later years.
In Canada, Car ...
The group was led by Andrew and Tully Merkel, whose Halifax,
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
, home became "a favourite rendezvous for writers and artists." The historian
Thomas Raddall
Thomas Head Raddall (13 November 1903 – 1 April 1994) was a Canadian writer of history and historical fiction.Charles Bruce, James D. Gillis, and Joe Wallace. Besides road trips, the group organized recitals and lectures, produced broadsheets, and kept in contact with Maritime poets who had moved away from the region.
They published broadsheets and mimeographed ''Song Fishermen Songbooks'' which were distributed to fans across North America, including a published memorial to
Bliss Carman
William Bliss Carman (April 15, 1861 – June 8, 1929) was a Canadian poet who lived most of his life in the United States, where he achieved international fame. He was acclaimed as Canada's poet laureate during his later years.
In Canada, Car ...
after his death in 1929. Publishing was arranged by J. B. Livesay of Canadian Press, (modernist poet
Dorothy Livesay
Dorothy Kathleen May Livesay, (October 12, 1909 – December 29, 1996) was a Canadian poet who twice won the Governor General's Award in the 1940s, and was "senior woman writer in Canada" during the 1970s and 1980s.Mathews, R.D.. "Dorothy L ...
's father). When that publishing outlet was closed in 1929, the Song Fishermen officially disbanded in September 1929 with a two-day celebration including poetry, reciting,
piping
Within industry, piping is a system of pipes used to convey fluids (liquids and gases) from one location to another. The engineering discipline of piping design studies the efficient transport of fluid.
Industrial process piping (and accompa ...
,
Highland dancing
Highland dance or Highland dancing ( gd, dannsa Gàidhealach) is a style of competitive dancing developed in the Scottish Highlands in the 19th and 20th centuries, in the context of competitions at public events such as the Highland games. It ...
, and a marine trip to
East Dover, Nova Scotia
East Dover is a rural community of the Halifax Regional Municipality in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia on the Chebucto Peninsula. It was probably named for Dover in Kent, England
England is a country that is part of the United Ki ...
.
A short-lived attempt was made to revive the publishing arm of the group using
Theodore Goodridge Roberts
George Edwards Theodore Goodridge Roberts (July 7, 1877 – February 24, 1953) was a Canadian novelist and poet. He was the author of thirty-four novels and over one hundred published stories and poems.
He was the brother of poet Charles G. D. R ...
's ''Acadie'' publishing facilities in Saint John in 1930.
In ''The Quest of the Folk'', Ian McKay discusses the anti-modernist tendencies of The Song Fishermen, who "combined Scottish romance with the cult of the fisherfolk.".McKay, Ian. ''The Quest of the Folk.'' McGill-Queens University Press, 1994.