The Definitive Journals of Lewis & Clark - (Definitive Journals of Lewis and Clark) by Meriwether Lewis & William Clark (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

This landmark volume contains the most complete listing and presentation of the plant specimens collected by the Lewis and Clark expedition. All but one of the plants were collected by Meriwether Lewis, the expedition's botanist. The collection, how-ever, was nearly lost over the years when it was scattered among various botanists who intended to catalog the expedition's scientific discoveries. Fortunately, for many years the specimens have been in the care of major institutions, principally the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia. The 239 extant items are brought together in one book for the first time. This indispensable volume will assist researchers and enthusiasts hoping to identify each plant's date and place of collection and other information such as plant habitat and ethnobotanical use.

Review Quotes

"The University of Nebraska Press has become the pre-eminent publisher of Lewis and Clark titles, including what is now considered the definitive edition of the journals edited by Nebraska history professor Gary Moulton."--John Marshall, Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"Anyone interested in the Lewis and Clark Expedition will enjoy looking at the specimens and tracing when and where Lewis made the collection via an accompanying map and appendix. Botanists will find this book informative for matters of identification, taxonomy, and natural history."--South Dakota History

"These journals are national treasures and now are available for everyone's taste: the thirteen volumes for the scholar and the present edition for the public. To quote a modern Canadian historian of the American West, 'Chapeau Gary Moulton!'"--Missouri Historical Review

"To produce this long-awaited contribution to the history of the Lewis and Clark expedition, editor Gary E. Moulton called upon many botanists and other specialists to assist him. Their labors have produced, at long last, what Jefferson originally intended as an essential component of the expedition's written record."--Journal of America's Military Past, Michael J. Broadhead-- (10/24/2006 12:00:00 AM)

"Well organized, the book's introduction, calendar of botanical specimens, herbarium list, and six good appendixes are valuable reports that should be of interest to many Americans wanting good information about our country's natural history."--Audubon Nationalist News

About the Author

Gary E. Moulton is Thomas C. Sorensen Professor of American History at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His editing of the Lewis and Clark journals earned him the J. Franklin Jameson Award of the American Historical Association and the Outstanding Research and Creative Activity Award from the University of Nebraska.