Henry Youle Hind was born on June 1, 1823, in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England.

He was a teacher, professor, journalist, geologist, explorer, and author. He attended college at Leipzig, Germany, 1837-1839, and studied in England and France before immigrating to Toronto, Ontario in 1846. He became an assistant master in the new Normal School, where he lectured in mathematics, natural philosophy, and agricultural chemistry. In 1851, he joined the reorganized Canadian Institute, and in 1852, he became the first editor of its Canadian Journal: A Repertory of Industry, Science and Art (Toronto), a position he retained until 1855. In 1851, he joined the University of Trinity College as a Professor of Chemistry and Geology. The Geological Survey of Canada asked him to join an expedition to explore the territory between Fort William and the Red River settlement at Fort Garry. Hind's “Narrative of the Canadian Red River Exploring Expedition of 1857” was published in 1860. In 1858, he took part in the Assiniboine and Saskatchewan expeditions. Following his return to Toronto, he resumed his teaching position at the University of Toronto, Trinity College, and in 1861, he became editor of the Journal of the Board of Arts and Manufactures (Toronto). He was a member of the Royal Canadian Institute. In 1864, he travelled to England to read a paper on the glacial drift, to the Geological Society of London. In 1866, he moved his family to Windsor, Nova Scotia where he became a consulting geologist for the provincial government. He published numerous articles on geology, the natural sciences, and agriculture. In 1876, he surveyed the coast of Labrador and became interested in its fisheries and ocean currents. His map of Labrador currents brought him a gold medal at the World Expo in Paris in 1878.

In 1850, he married Katharine Cameron (1820-1909). He died in 1908 in Windsor, Nova Scotia.