WILLIAM BARTRAM

'William Bartram' (April 20, 1739 — July 22, 1823) was an American naturalist, the son of John Bartram. Bartram was born in Kingsessing, Pennsylvania. He accompanied his father on many of his travels, to the Catskill Mountains and Florida, and was noted at a young age for the quality of the drawings he produced of botanical specimens his father had gathered. He also had an increasing role in the maintenance of his father's showcase garden, and added several rare species to it.
In 1773, he set off alone on a four-year journey through eight southern colonies. He made many drawings and took notes on the native flora and fauna, and the native American Indians. He found great cooperation from Ahaya the Cowkeeper, chief of the Alachua band of the Seminole tribe. In 1774, he celebrated Bartram's visit to his principal village at Cuskowilla with a great feast. When Bartram explained to the Cowkeeper that he was interested in studying the local plants and animals, the chief was amused and began calling him "Puc-puggee," or "the flower hunter." But, he also gave him free rein to explore his territory on Payne's Prairie.

Contents

Exploration of the Cherokee Nation

Return to Philadelphia

Bibliography

References

Additional information

Exploration of the Cherokee Nation

On April 22, 1776 Bartram left Charleston, SC alone on horseback destined to explore the Cherokee Nation.^[1] After passing through Augusta May 10th,^[2] Dartmouth on May 15th ()^[3], a few days later he left Fort Prince George and Keowee () after not being able to procure a guide .^[4]
In addition to his botanizing, Bartram aptly described the journey:
:"...all alone in a wild Indian country, a thousand miles from my native land, and a vast distance from any settlements of white people."^[5]
:"It was now after noon; I approached a charming vale, amidst sublimely high forests, awful shades! Darkness gathers around, far distant thunder rolls over the trembling hills; the black clouds with august majesty and power, moves slowly forwards, shading regions of towering hills, and threatening all the destructions of a thunderstorm; all around is now still as death, not a whisper is heard, but a total inactivity and silence seems to pervade the earth; the birds afraid to utter a chirrup, and in low tremulous voices take leave of each other, seeking covert and safety; every insect is silenced, and nothing heard but the roaring of the approaching hurricane; the mighty cloud now expands its sable wings, extending from North to South, and is driven irresistibly on by the tumultuous winds, spreading his livid wings around the gloomy concave, armed with terrors of thunder and fiery shafts of lightning; now the lofty forests bend low beneath its fury, their limbs and wavy boughs are tossed about and catch hold of each other; the mountains tremble and seem to reel about, and the ancient hills to be shaken to their foundations: the furious storm sweeps along, smoaking through the vale and over the resounding hills; the face of the earth is obscured by the deluge descending from the firmament, and I am deafened by the din of thunder; the tempestuous scene damps my spirits, and my horse sinks under me at the tremendous peals, as I hasten for the plain."^[6]
:"I began to ascend the Jore Mountains, which I at length accomplished, and rested on the most elevated peak; from whence I beheld with rapture and astonishment, a sublimely awful scene of power and magnificence, a world of mountains piled upon mountains. Having contemplated this amazing prospect of grandeur, I descended the pinnacles..."^[7](probably Wayah Bald )

Return to Philadelphia

Bartram returned to Philadelphia in January, 1777 and spent his later years working at the Bartram's Garden. During this period he compiled the most complete list of American birds up to that time.

Upon his return, Bartram published his journal in 1791, under the title ''Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East and West Florida, the Cherokee Country, etc.'', which was considered at the time to be one of the foremost books on American natural history. Many of his accounts of historical sites were the earliest recordings, including the Georgia mound site of Ocmulgee. In addition to its contributions to scientific knowledge, ''Travels'' is noted for its original descriptions of the American countryside, which in turn influenced many of the Romantic writers of the day. William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge and François René de Chateaubriand are known to have read the book, and its influence can be seen in many of their works.
In 1802 Bartram met the school teacher Alexander Wilson and began to teach him the rudiments of ornithology and natural history illustration. Wilson's ''American Ornithology'' includes many references to Bartram and the area around Bartram's Garden.
The Bartram's Sandpiper, now known as the Upland Sandpiper, and its genus ''Bartramia'' were named by Wilson in honour of his mentor in volume 7 (published in 1813) of ''American Ornithology''.
Bartram spent most of the final decades of his life in quiet work and study at his home and garden in Kingsessing, refusing several requests to teach botany and declining an invitation from Thomas Jefferson to accompany an expedition up the Red River in the Louisiana Territory in 1806. He died at his home at the age of 84.
The William Bartram Scenic Highway runs along the east side of the St. Johns River from Jacksonville south in to northwestern St. Johns County on State Road 13. Bartram Trail high school in Switzerland, Florida (just south of Jacksonville) is named for William Bartram. The Bartram Trail is a hiking trail in North Carolina, Georgia, and South Carolina that commemorates his journeys through the area.

Bibliography

★ ''Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East and West Florida, the Cherokee Country, etc.'' Philadelphia, 1791. ''Modern editions include:''

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★ ''William Bartram: Travels and Other Writings.'' Thomas Slaughter, editor. Library of America, 1996. ISBN 978-1-88301111-6.

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★ ''Travels and Other Writings: Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East and West Florida...'' Ronald E. Latham, editor. Penguin, 1988. ISBN 0140170081

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★ ''Travels Through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East and West Florida.'' University of Virginia Press, 1980. ISBN 081390871X

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★ William Bartram, 1739-1823: Travels etc. ''Documenting the American South,'' University Library, University of North Carolina.

References

★ Borland, Hal. The Memorable Bartrams. ''American Heritage Magazine''. April, 1975. Volume 26, Issue 3. Accessed March 2, 2007.

★ Cashin, Edward J. William Bartram in Georgia. ''New Georgia Encyclopedia.'' Accessed March 2, 2007.

★ Savage, Henry Jr. ''Discovering America, 1700-1875.'' p. 63-70. Harper & Row, 1979.

★ "William Bartram" ''Dictionary of Literary Biography,'' Volume 37: ''American Writers of the Early Republic.'' Emory Elliot, ed. The Gale Group, 1985, pp. 31-38.

★ "William Bartram 1739-1823" ''Dictionary of American Biography.'' American Council of Learned Societies, 1928-1936.
1. {{cite book |author=Bartram, William |title=Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East & West Florida |publisher=University of Virginia Press (by arrangement with The Beehive Press) |location=Charlottesville |year=1980 |pages= |isbn= |oclc= |doi=|id= p306
2. {{cite book |author=Bartram, William |title=Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East & West Florida |publisher=University of Virginia Press (by arrangement with The Beehive Press) |location=Charlottesville |year=1980 |pages= |isbn= |oclc= |doi=|id= p318
3. {{cite book |author=Bartram, William |title=Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East & West Florida |publisher=University of Virginia Press (by arrangement with The Beehive Press) |location=Charlottesville |year=1980 |pages= |isbn= |oclc= |doi=|id= p324
4. {{cite book |author=Bartram, William |title=Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East & West Florida |publisher=University of Virginia Press (by arrangement with The Beehive Press) |location=Charlottesville |year=1980 |pages= |isbn= |oclc= |doi=|id= p331
5. {{cite book |author=Bartram, William |title=Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East & West Florida |publisher=University of Virginia Press (by arrangement with The Beehive Press) |location=Charlottesville |year=1980 |pages= |isbn= |oclc= |doi=|id= p329
6. {{cite book |author=Bartram, William |title=Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East & West Florida |publisher=University of Virginia Press (by arrangement with The Beehive Press) |location=Charlottesville |year=1980 |pages= |isbn= |oclc= |doi=|id= p341
7. {{cite book |author=Bartram, William |title=Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East & West Florida |publisher=University of Virginia Press (by arrangement with The Beehive Press) |location=Charlottesville |year=1980 |pages= |isbn= |oclc= |doi=|id= p360

Additional information

★ Fishman, Gail. (2001) ''Journeys Through Paradise'', University Press of Florida. ISBN 0-8130-1874-9

★ Bartram's Garden, long-time residence of William Bartram.

★ Bartram Trail Conference.

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★ Exploration of the Cherokee Country, 1775–85