The Natural History of the Long Expedition to the Rocky Mountains (1819-1820)

A little over 170 years ago--hardly a moment on the clock of history--one half of the United States was empty of all but Indians and the plants and game on which they subsisted. Indeed, acquiring the Louisiana Territory approximately doubled the size of the United States, adding 800,000 square miles of land that had scarcely been explored or adequately mapped. Americans would be given an in-depth look this rugged and untamed land only when Secretary of War John C. Calhoun and President James Monroe agreed that a military presence at the mouth of the Yellowstone River (near the boundary between North Dakota and Montana) would impress the Indians and serve notice to Canadian trappers and traders that some of their favorite beaver country was now part of the United States. In The Natural History of the Long Expedition to the Rocky Mountains (1819- 1820), Howard E. Evans offers a colorful history of the expedition of Major Stephen H. Long--the first scientific exploration of the Louisiana Territory to be accompanied by trained naturalists and artists. Made up of twenty-two men--military personnel and "scientific gentlemen"--the Long Expedition struggled on foot and horseback along the Front Range of the Rockies, living off the land, recording rivers and landforms, shooting birds, plucking plants, and catching lizards and insects to preserve for study. They were often thirsty and hungry, sometimes ill, and always tired. But theirs was an experience awarded to only a chosen few: the opportunity to see and record firsthand the pristine lands that so majestically defined the United States. Based primarily on the expedition members' reports and diaries, and often told in the participants' own words, this fascinating chronicle transports readers back to the near-virgin wilderness of 1820. We accompany naturalist Edwin James as he becomes the first man to climb Pike's Peak, and roam with him in his dual role as botanist, collecting a multitude of flora specimens, 140 of which were described by him and others as new. We sit with artist Samuel Seymour as he sketches in vivid detail the panorama of breathtaking peaks and prominent landforms, travel along with Titian Peale as he visits the homes of Native Americans and records with an artist's keen eye and gifted hand the intense beauty of this land's first inhabitants, and go exploring with zoologist Thomas Say as he describes never before seen mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and insects. Beautifully illustrated with crisp reproductions of Peale and Seymour's art, as well as photographs of the many plants and insects described by James and Say, The Natural History of the Long Expedition to the Rocky Mountains (1819-1820) offers a vivid account of this monumental expedition. The story of the Long Expedition has been told before, but without due recognition of the party's great contributions to natural history. Now, anyone interested in the early history of the American West can witness for themselves how this vast and varied land looked and felt when it was first seen by trained scientists and artists.

Evans, Howard Ensign

Travel

Oxford University Press

Computers & Technology

Computer Science

Life on a Little-Known Planet

Science & Math

Biological Sciences

Dutton c1966, 1968

William Morton Wheeler, (1865-1937), a man of extraordinary learning in many fields and a brilliant writer and lecturer, is a significant figure in the history of biology. His studies of social insects, especially ants, contributed greatly to the biological sciences, but his interests and acquaintances ranged far beyond that one limited aspect of biology. In this volume the Evans combine a well-written biography with an important contribution to the history of biology. Their study begins with Wheelers boyhood in Milwaukee and his year at Wards Natural Science Establishment in Rochester. His activities as a graduate student at Clark University and his early teaching at the Universities of Chicago and Texas enable them to present an inside view of the formative years of those institutions, as does his involvement with the founding of the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole and the Barro Colorado Laboratory in Panama. After a few years at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, Wheeler went to Harvard, where he stayed for the rest of his life, becoming professor of economic entomology at the Bussey Institution in 1908 and dean in 1914. His continuous and vigorous pioneering make his life story an important chapter in the history of biology. At the time of writing the book, Mr. Evans was Alexander Agassiz Professor of Zoology, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University. Mrs. Evans has contributed articles on the history of biology to several journals.

William Morton Wheeler, Biologist

Biographies & Memoirs

Evans, Mary Alice

Professionals & Academics

Harvard University Press

The wasps

David and Charles

Book by Evans, Howard Ensign, O'Neill, Kevin M.

The Natural History and Behavior of North American Beewolves

O'Neill, Kevin M.

Cornell Univ Pr

Informational book on classification and behavior of wasps.

Wasp Farm

Cornell University Press

Looks at the early study of North American wildlife, describes various species, and discusses the first naturalists to identify them

Pioneer Naturalists: The Discovery and Naming of North American Plants and Animals

Nature & Ecology

Henry Holt Co.

Cache LA Poudre: The Natural History of a Rocky Mountain River

The Cache la Poudre River and its tributaries flow through the major cities of north central Colorado. In 1986, a major portion of the pristine Cache la Poudre and its south fork were added to the federal Wild and Scenic River system, the first river in Colorado to be included. With its eloquent and often poetic style, Cache la Poudre explains the natural history of the river basin beginning in the tundra of Rocky Mountain National Park and tracing the river eighty miles through several life zones before joining the South Platte just east of Greeley. Arguing convincingly a philosophy of ecological responsibility, the authors tell this story with superb awareness of the balances in nature and the impact of human intrusion. Exquisite detail is paid to plants and animals: descriptions of the complex meanings of birds’ songs, the sexual ritual of insects, and the struggles between predators and prey elicit vivid visualization and an exhilarating sense of discovery. An engaging and educational journal of two modern-day explorers, Cache la Poudre may join the ranks of some of the best environmental books written, including works by Enos Mills, John Muir, Aldo Leopold, and Wendell Berry.

Univ Pr of Colorado

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Evans, Howard Ensign. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Evans, Howard Ensign