On the north side of Pictou's Church Street, a couple of dozen feet east of George Street, is a small hillside rock garden, the rear of which is surrounded by a stone wall. In the centre is a concrete monument consisting of two steles forming a 90 degree corner. On each front face is a CNHP plaque, one each for father and son John and George Dawson. The father's plaque is on the left, the son's on the right.
Apparently there have been two plaques for George Dawson as the text at Parks Canada differs from that on the current plaque. I have include both texts below.
DR. GEORGE MERCER DAWSON
1849-1901
New
Best known for his exploration in British Columbia and the Yukon, George Dawson was horn at Pictou, the son of the scientist and teacher, William Dawson. After serving with the North American Boundary Commission in 1873-4, he joined the Geological Survey of Canada, of which he became Director in 1895. For his work on the Bering Sea Commission he was made a C.M.G. in 1892. A scholar of wide interests as well as a renowned field geologist, Dawson was President of the Royal Society of Canada (1893) and author of pioneer works on West Coast ethnology. Dawson, Y.T., was named for him. He died in Ottawa.
Old
As geologist for the North American Boundary Commission 1873 and the Canadian Geological Survey, of which he became Director, 1895, he explored much of the Canadian Northwest. Commissioner on Behring Sea Resources 1892. President Royal Society of Canada, 1893. Born at Pictou, 1st August, 1849 Died in Ottawa, 2nd March, 1901.
George Mercer Dawson
George Mercer Dawson, geologist (b at Pictou, NS 1 Aug 1849; d at Ottawa 2 Mar 1901), son of Sir John William DAWSON. He studied at McGill, then at the Royal School of Mines, London. His superior mental and observational powers became widely known from his work as a geologist and botanist to the International Boundary Commission, which surveyed the FORTY-NINTH PARALLEL from Lake of the Woods to the Rockies 1873-75. He accurately reported on the geology, mineral resources, agriculture and climate, including locust invasions, of the western plains.
In 1875 he joined the GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF CANADA. His survey of BC strongly influenced government decisions on the proposed route of the CANADIAN PACIFIC RY. A charter ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA member (1882), Dawson by 1883 was assistant director of the GSC. In 1887 he surveyed the Alaska boundary at the Yukon River and investigated gold discoveries there. In 1892 he became British commissioner on Bering Sea natural resources, and in 1896, a member of the Ethnological Survey of Canada. He was also GSC director 1895-1901.
Dawson's brilliance in systematic mapping provided a sound basis for understanding the geology and mineral resources of much of northern and western Canada, and offered reliable guidance to mining, ranching, agricultural and lumbering industries. He also encouraged investigation and development of western coal and petroleum resources. The first comprehensive work on Canada's physiography,
Descriptive Sketch of the Physical Geography and Geology of the Dominion of Canada, was published by Dawson and A.R.C. Selwyn (1884).
From the Canadian Encyclopaedia