Louis Arthur Cunningham (September 28, 1900 – June 13, 1954) was a Canadian author from Saint John,

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

. Throughout his career, he published 31 novels as well as over 500 short stories. He has been described as a "prolific writer" in

Atlantic Canada Atlantic Canada, also called the Atlantic provinces (), is the list of regions of Canada, region of Eastern Canada comprising four provinces: New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. As of 2021, the landma ...

. His literature has been featured in several

periodicals Periodical literature (singularly called a periodical publication or simply a periodical) consists of Publication, published works that appear in new releases on a regular schedule (''issues'' or ''numbers'', often numerically divided into annu ...

throughout North America and Europe.

Early life and career

Cunningham was born on September 28, 1900, to parents William John Cunningham and Sarah () Cunningham. He attended

Saint John High School Saint John High School (SJHS) is a high school located in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. It was founded in 1805 and is the oldest publicly funded school in Canada. History Saint John High School was a filming location for the 2001 crime dra ...

, which he graduated from in 1918. In 1922, he graduated from the

University of St. Joseph's College The University of St. Joseph's College was the leading Acadian cultural institution, an Acadian Catholic university in Memramcook, New Brunswick that closed in 1966, when it was amalgamated with two other Catholic Acadian colleges to form the ...

with a

bachelor of arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

, and obtained his master's degree the following year. In 1923, he received a Knights of Columbus' graduate scholarship from the

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily a ...

from

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, where he was set to pursue his

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

at the university starting September 1973. During his time spent at the Catholic University of America, he taught English, French and Latin. The following year, he taught the same subjects at the

Notre Dame University The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Catholic religious order o ...

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

for another year.

Career

In 1925, Cunningham returned to Saint John to pursue a career in writing, starting with fiction work. He published his first work the same year, and in September 1927 he published his first novel, ''Yvon Tremblay'', through Graphic Publishers of

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

. Works of his would be showcased in magazines such as ''

Maclean's ''Maclean's'' is a Canadian magazine founded in 1905 which reports on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, trends and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian ...

'', ''Top-Notch Detective Stories'' and the ''Chicago News''. In 1935, he published ''The Tides of the Tantramar''. His novel ''The Forest Gate'' was published by the ''

Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', often referred to simply as ''The Inquirer'', is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded on June 1, 1829, ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is the third-longest continuously operating da ...

'' in 1942.

Personal life

Cunningham married Hortense Marie Mooney on July 10, 1929. They moved to a cottage in East Riverside, where Cunningham met and befriended fellow writers Hiram Alfred Cody and W. E. D. Ross. In 1934, the couple moved again to a house in

Hammond River The Hammond River is a tributary of the Kennebecasis River in New Brunswick, Canada. It runs approximately in southern Kings County along the border of Saint John County. It rises in the Caledonia Highlands near the rural community of Hammondva ...

Death

On June 13, 1954, Cunningham died at his

residence at the age of 53.

Bibliography

* ''Yvon Tremblay'' (1927) * ''Life of Lady Hamilton'' (1929) * ''This Thing Called Love'' (1929) * ''The King's Fool'' (1931) * ''Tides of the Tantramar'' (1935) * ''Fog over Fundy'' (1936) * ''Moon Over Acadie'' (1937) * ''Valley of the Stars'' (1938) * ''Discords of the Deep'' (1938) * ''Ove These Three Loves'' (1939) * ''The Sign of the Burning Ship'' (1940) * ''Marionette'' (1941) * ''The Forest Gate'' (1946) * ''The Wandering Heart'' (1947) * ''Evergreen Cottage'' (1949) * ''Wherever You Are'' (1950) * ''In Quest of Even'' (1953) * ''Beside the Laughing Water'' (1953) * ''Key to Romance'' (1953) * ''Should Thy Love Die'' (1954) * ''Sweet Constancy'' (1955) * ''The Lily Pool'' (1955) * ''Meg Shannon's Story'' (1956) * ''Stars Over Seven Oaks'' (1957) * ''You Are the Dream'' (1958) * ''Whisper to the Stars'' (1959) * ''A Sunlit Grove'' (1959)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cunningham, Louis 1900 births 1954 deaths 20th-century Canadian male writers 20th-century Canadian novelists 20th-century Canadian short story writers Catholic University of America faculty St. Joseph's College alumni University of Notre Dame faculty Writers from Saint John, New Brunswick Novelists from New Brunswick