WALLACE W HANSEN

Native Plants of the Northwest

Native Plant Nursery & Gardens

2158 Bower Ct S.E., Salem, Oregon 97301 E-Mail: Wallace W Hansen
PHONE (503)581-2638 FAX(503)581-9957

Updated February 6, 2003

Wallace Hansen Celebrates Lewis and Clark

Fort Clatsop's mid-winter brought new foods, new friends and new customs to the group. Some journal entries by Captain Lewis:  

February 07, 1806
Meriwether Lewis

This evening we had what I call an excellent supper it consisted of a marrowbone a piece and a brisket of boiled Elk that had the appearance of a little fat on it. This for Fort Clatsop is living in high stile.

The small pox has distroyed a great number of the natives in this quarter. It prevailed about 4 years since among the Clatsops and destroy[ed] several hundred of them, four of their chiefs fell victyms to it's ravages.

February 12, 1806
Meriwether Lewis

This morning we were visited by a Clatsop man who brought with him three dogs as a remuneration for the Elk which himself and nation had stolen from us some little time since, however the dogs took the alarm and ran off; ...

Throughout the months spent at the fort, Captains Lewis and Clark pursued their missions with diligence and zeal. It's curious that Captain Lewis, a comparatively young man of 28, was so interested in plants. We think he gained his botanical curiosity and thirst for knowledge quite literally at his mother's knee--she was an herbalist. She acquainted him with the trees, shrubs, and flowers of his home to the east of the Mississippi. Building on this foundation, President Jefferson sent him to Philadelphia to study the science of botany. Under Benjamin Barton, Meriwether gained a good understanding of the plant classification standard developed by Carl Linnaeus. Though he knew the Latin words, Captain Lewis rarely used them. Perhaps he felt more at home with the common names.

Our plant list is still under development but we do hope to have it available soon.

Botanical Discoveries: Mountain Hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana)

Fort Clatsop, Oregon, February 5, 1806

Named Washington State tree in 1947, the Mountain Hemlock is an outstanding small evergreen tree. It's beautiful gray-green foliage and smaller stature allow it to be used in even smaller gardens and containers. It makes an excellent bonsai.

Below is a new Heidi Hansen painting created especially for this website, illustrating the Mountain Hemlock natural form and detail of leaves and cones. 

The Pacific County Friends of Lewis & Clark are pleased to host author and historian, James Holmberg for a talk and book signing on his new book Dear Brother on Saturday, February 22nd at the Inn at Ilwaco at 3:30 pm. Also, Ron Craig, filmmaker and author will speak on Who Was York?

William Clark wrote at least 45 letters to his older brother, Jonathan, including six that were written during the epic Lewis & Clark expedition. This book publishes all of these letters for the first time, revealing details about the expedition, the mysterious death of Lewis and the status of Clark’s slave York. We learn the details of Clark and York’s falling out and subsequent alienation. Together the letters and the richly informative

Introductions and annotations by James Holmberg provide valuable insights into the lives of Lewis & Clark and the world of Jeffersonian America.

Mr. Holmberg, Curator at the Filson Historical Society in Louisville, Kentucky, specializes in Lewis & Clark history. He wrote the epilogue to the revised edition (2000) of Robert Bett’s In Search of York; The Slave Who Went To The Pacific With Lewis & Clark and edited Dear Brother: Letters of William Clark to Jonathan Clark. Mr. Holmberg was a featured speaker, along with Ron Craig at the opening of the Lewis & Clark Bicentennial at Monticello this January.

Mr. Craig is the Executive Producer of Filmworks Northwest, based in Portland, Oregon. He is currently creating a documentary entitled Who is York? A New Look at the Lewis and Clark Expedition to educate people of all ages about York, the only African American member of he Corps of Discovery. He also has co-authored a children’s book of the same title that will be published by National Geographic during the Bicentennial years. 

The talks and book signing will be held at the historic and charming Inn at Ilwaco, located at 120 Williams Ave, Ilwaco, Washington.  For information on lodging or directions, call 360-642-8686. If you would like to reserve a book or have it mailed to you, please call Time Enough Books in Ilwaco at 360-642-7667.

The Pacific County Friends of Lewis & Clark will serve refreshments after the talks. This event is free and open to the public. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear some of the most foremost experts on Clark and York in the country.

December 7, 2002 - June 15, 2003

"Time Not Wasted -- Winter with the Corps"

Exhibit Lewis and Clark National Trail Interpretive Center

Great Falls, MT

The exhibit portrays the winter encampments of the Lewis and Clark Expedition and how each encampment uniquely met more than the basic needs of survival – due to the natural surroundings and the objectives at the three different locations: Fort Dubois, Fort Mandan, and Fort Clatsop.

The Center’s winter hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.; the Center is closed Mondays during the winter. For more information about the Center and its programs, call (406) 727-8733 or visit www.fs.fed.us/r1/lewisclark/lcic.htm on the Internet. The Center is managed by the USDA Forest Service.

To see back issues of Wallace Hansen Celebrates Lewis and Clark, click on this link to jump to the index. 

The illustrated map below was created by renowned botanical artist Heidi D. Hansen especially for this website. Done in ink and watercolors, Heidi shows many of the plants Captain Lewis documented overlaid atop a map showing a portion of the journey. (Click on image for large view).

Good luck and happy gardening!

Wally

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