John L. Carleton

1861-1936

John Louis Carleton was born in Saint John, New Brunswick, in 1861 and was educated in the public education system and later at the School of the Christian Brothers in Saint John. He then studied law in the offices of Weldon & McLean and in the offices of Allen and Chandler. Carleton was admitted to the Bar of New Brunswick as an attorney in 1882 and as a barrister in 1892.In 1883 he wrote the play More Sinned Against than Sinning and In One Night in 1886. Carleton established a law practice in Saint John and in 1886 was appointed referee in Equity. Carleton was later appointed as a reporter for the Supreme Court of New Brunswick. In 1904, Carleton was appointed county court judge for the district comprising the counties of Carleton, Victoria, and Madawaska. In May of that year, Judge Carleton established an office in the Opera House Block in Woodstock. Carleton was also an amateur playwright having written and performed in his own plays while living in Saint John. Carleton continued to write plays and in 1918, his play, The Crimson Wing, won first prize in the Canadian play competition of that year. Several of his plays were published first by the Dramatic Publishing Company of Chicago and later by the Cornhill Publishing Company of Boston, Massachusetts.  On 5 February 1930, Judge Carleton resigned his seat as court judge.  He died in 1936, at Woodstock, New Brunswick, aged 74 years.

 

 

Predominant New Brunswick Residences:

Saint John, Woodstock

Archival Material

• John Louis Carleton fonds
  ⌄
  Location

  Provincial Archives of New Brunswick

  Website/Catalogue Record

  View Archival Record

  Retrieval Number

  MC4266/MC1

  Date Range of Material

  1880-1886, 1915-1928, 1952

  Extent

  20 cm of textual records

  Scope and Content Note

  This fonds mainly consists of materials related to John Louis Carleton's activities as an amateur playwright. The fonds includes correspondence between J. L. Carleton and Cornhill Publishing Co., newspaper clippings, show programs, and manuscripts of the following plays: The Medieval Hun, Lores Defender," "The Dungarvans," "Oh How Delightful, The Crimson Wing, The O'Mahoney, The Middogue, The Lord of Cashel, The Purple Testament, Ready, Aye Ready, and an untitled play.