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Botanical Discoveries: Big Leaf Maple (Acer
macrophyllum) Cascades of the Columbia River in Hood River County, Oregon, April
10, 1806
Although the tree addressed here was incorrectly
called an ash, the scientific name is
Acer macrophyllum, today's
common name is Big Leaf Maple. Clark writes "the large leafed ash is in blume." He wrote about
this tree earlier on February 10, 1806, and called it "a tree common to
the Columbia river below the entrance of cataract river." Both
Lewis and Clark frequently referred to this species as an ash. At right is a
photo of the remaining specimen collected this date.
Among the most handsome of maples,
these impressive trees host a variety of moss, lichens
and Licorice Ferns on their very bark, adding to their
incredible beauty.
These rapidly growing maples are
hardy from USDA 7-10 and grow along the Pacific coast to
the west side of the Cascades and Sierra Nevada
mountains. At maturity, they can reach 100,' with a 50'
spread. The leaves reach 1' in diameter and blanket the
forest in brilliant yellows and golds when they fall.
Come spring and the branches will be laden with creamy
yellow flowers.
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The Expedition's Journey
Continues: The rainy weather dowses the men and their baggage
as well as adding to the hazards of the slippery road over the rapids of
the Columbia River, a road Lewis says is 2,800 yards long. The expedition
must portage their entire goods down this road to get to the other side of
the river. At the same time, some men must be
left to guard the baggage from the Wahcellahs who Captain Lewis describes
as "the greatest thieves and scoundrels we have met with."
With much hard work the portage took place but
not without incident. One of the natives "had the insolence to cast
stones down the bank" at two of the expedition. John Shields, another
expedition member, was delayed in joining the main group because he wanted
to purchase a dog. Two of the natives tried to take the dog and push
Shields out of the road but they fled through the woods when he drew a
large knife with which to defend himself.
Next, three other Wahclellahs stole Captain
Lewis' dog. Some of the party gave chase whereupon the natives left the
dog and fled. They also stole an axe which was recovered.
We ordered the sentinel to keep them out of
camp, and informed them by signs that if they made any further attempts
to steal our property, or insulted our men, we should put them to
instant death. A chief of the Wahclellahs tribe informed us that there
were two very bad men among the Wahclellahs who had been the principal
actors in these scenes of outrage of which we complained, and that it
was not the wish of the nation by any means to displease us. We told him
that we hoped it might be the case, but we should certainly be as good
as our word if they persisted in their insolence. I am convinced that no
other consideration but our number at this moment protects us. The chief
appeared mortified at the conduct of his people, and seemed friendily
disposed toward us. As he appeared to be a man of consideration, and we
had reason to believe much respected by the neighboring tribes, we
thought it well to bestow a medal of small size upon him.
Captain
Lewis, 11 April 1806.
Go to our Corps of Discovery Expedition
Bicentennial Index page
to see all links in this series. Or click
here
to go directly to the next installment of our
journey.
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Bringing history alive: The
Tucson Museum of Art and Historic Block (www.tucsonmuseumofart.org/exhibitions/the-journey-of-lewis-and-clark)
presents The Journey of Lewis and Clark, a monumental
exhibition from three different areas to give a more rounded
understanding of the people and landscapes that shaped that
time in our country’s history. All the objects on view are
drawn from one private collection.
The largest portion of the
exhibition is "Charles Fritz: An Artist with the Corps of
Discovery – One Hundred Paintings Illustrating the Journals
of Lewis and Clark." The Montana artist completed his first
Lewis and Clark painting in 1998 and his last one in 2008.
The one hundred oils he created chronicle the explorers’
journals from their first sighting of the Great Falls of the
Missouri to a buffalo hunt to the Pacific Ocean and back. |
"Captain Lewis Meets the Yellowstone"
By Charles Fritz
www.charlesfritz.com/ |
| Fritz’s own journey
following the journals of Lewis and Clark began through a
collector of western art who was seeking an artist to paint
a scene based on Lewis’ description in 1805 of the
Yellowstone River from a bluff on the Missouri. As Fritz
began to work on the commission he became more determined to
complete the whole expedition as if he was the artist with
the Corps of Discovery. His paintings take the viewer from
the beginning of the journey to its triumphant end and all
the hardships in between. "Michael Haynes – To
the Western Ocean: Portraits of the Lewis and Clark
Expedition" contain fourteen watercolor portraits that bring
the people behind the Corps of Discovery to life. Lewis,
Clark, York, and Sacagawea are portrayed in individual
portraits while the other thirty members are shown in group
portraits including hunters, soldiers, blacksmiths,
interpreters, cooks, and musicians. His “Uniform and Dress
of the Corps of Discovery” paintings were selected as guides
for the uniforms in the National Geographic’s Lewis and
Clark IMAX production.
Included in "Thomas Jefferson’s West: At the Confluence of
Art and Exploration" are selections of paintings and
drawings that illustrate Lewis and Clark’s Corp of Discovery
expedition. He selected the works himself, paying close
attention to the content of each piece to tell the story of
their adventures in narrative form. This grouping includes
works by William Ahrendt, James Ayers, Jim Carson, Todd
Connor, Curt Delano, John Demott, Frank Hagel, Mort Kunstler,
Ken Laager, Dan Meiduch, Clark Kelly Price, Don Spaulding,
and David Wright. Each artist has established a
distinguished career as painters and illustrators in the
romantic and historic depiction of a fascinating era in
American history. |
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