Quebec writer, journalist and librarian Éva Circé-Côté (1871-1949) will soon have a library named after her. The Saint-Charles library, in the Sud-Ouest borough of Montreal, announced that when it reopens with its new look — renovation and redevelopment for $42.5 million, which will begin slowly with an architectural competition in 2023 —, she will adopt the name of the woman of letters. Éva Circé had until then only one avenue in Rivière-des-Prairies named after her.
Of the women of her time who campaigned for social change in French Canada, Éva Circé-Côté was the most brilliant. She writes in a multitude of printed matter (The future, The Illustrated World, The Future of the North, The Nationalist), most often under assumed names — including Colombine, Musette or Julien St-Michel. She also co-founded the literary journal The spark and she is a poet and playwright.
Sensitive very early on to the importance of education, especially among young women, she defends the place of a public library. The Church has long been opposed to public access to books. Éva Circé-Côté participated in the founding of the Montreal municipal library. She is also the very first librarian of the City of Montreal, and the curator of the prestigious Philéas Gagnon collection.
With Jean-Francois Nadeau
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