Virtual Tour of Ross Bay Cemetery
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31. Emily Carr

Emily Carr is one of the most famous people buried at Ross Bay. Many people visit the cemetery to see her grave. However, they are surprised to find it is so small – just a simple granite plaque set in the ground. It was placed there in 1963 by the Victoria Historial Society. Before that the grave was unmarked.

Emily Carr- BC Archives Image D-06009
1871-1945
Block: H
Plot: 85 E 15

Artist and Writer

BC Archives Image D-06009
Named ‘Klee Wyck’ (The Laughing One) by the First Nations people of Vancouver Island, Emily is renowned for her writing and painting.

She was born 13 Dec 1871, Victoria, BC and died 02 Mar 1945, Victoria, BC at the age of 74. As a young lady studied in San Francisco, London and Paris, and taught art in Vancouver. She returned to Victoria in 1913.

Her paintings of the First Nations gave many a new insight to their totem poles and way of life. It was only near the end of her life that Emily Carr began to be recognized as an exceptional painter as well as a writer. Her first of seven books, Klee Wyck, won a Governor General’s Award. Her paintings of the British Columbian rainforest and First Nations villages hang in galleries across Canada.