A Gentlemanly Return: Lewis and Clark’s Botanical Borrowed Treasure
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast:
May 9, 1807
On this day, dear horticultural enthusiasts, we find ourselves not in a lush garden, but rather in the realm of literary adventures and botanical explorations.
For it was on this very date that the intrepid explorers Lewis and Clark returned a most well-traveled tome to its rightful owner, the esteemed Dr. Benjamin Smith Barton.
Picture, if you will, the scene in 1803: young Meriwether Lewis, his mind abuzz with the impending expedition, paying a visit to Dr. Barton's abode. One can almost smell the leather-bound books and hear the rustle of maps as Meriwether departed, clutching his borrowed treasure - The History of Louisiana by Antoine le Page.
Oh, what tales this book could tell if it could speak! Imagine the sights it witnessed, the flora and fauna it helped identify, as it journeyed with Lewis and Clark across the vast expanse of North America.
From the banks of the Mississippi to the shores of the Pacific, this literary companion was privy to discoveries that would reshape our understanding of the natural world.
Upon its return, Meriwether Lewis, ever the gentleman, penned a most touching note in the flyleaf of the book:
Dr. Benjamin Smith Barton was so obliging as to lend me this copy of Mons. Le Page's History of Louisiana in June 1803.
It has been since conveyed by me to the Pacific ocean through the interior of North America on my late tour thither and is now returned to its proprietor by his friends and obedient servant,
Meriwether Lewis
Philadelphia, May 9, 1807.
Can you envision it, dear readers?
The well-worn pages, perhaps bearing the occasional pressed leaf or hastily scribbled note, finally finding their way back to Dr. Barton's waiting hands?
As we tend to our gardens, let us take a moment to appreciate the botanical knowledge that explorers like Lewis and Clark have bestowed upon us. How many of the plants we nurture today were once unknown to Western science, their seeds and specimens carefully collected and cataloged during such epic journeys?
Perhaps, as we dig our hands into the rich soil, we might ponder: what undiscovered wonders still await in the far corners of our world? What botanical treasures might we unearth in our own backyard sanctuaries?
And so, on this day of literary return and botanical reflection, let us raise our trowels in salute to the explorers, the botanists, and the generous lenders of books who have enriched our horticultural heritage.
May we all approach our gardens with the same spirit of adventure and reverence for knowledge that guided Lewis and Clark on their remarkable journey.
