Instead of focusing exclusively on the Lewis and Clark expedition, the authors concentrate on what Lewis was doing immediately before and after his journey through Western territory. They assess his role as a natural scientist and as governor of the Louisiana Territory.

The definitive biography on Meriwether Lewis by Thomas C. Danisi and John C. Jackson now in paperback for the first time. October 11, 2009 marks the bicentennial of Meriwether Lewis's death. As the leader of the Lewis and Clark expedition, an epic exploration of uncharted territory west of the Mississippi, Lewis has been the subject of several biographies, yet much of the published information is unreliable. A number of myths surrounding his life and death persist. Now independent scholars Thomas C. Danisi and John C. Jackson have written this definitive biography based on twelve years of meticulous research. They have re-examined the original Lewis and Clark documents and searched through obscure and overlooked sources to reveal a wealth of fascinating new information on the enigmatic character and life of Meriwether Lewis. Instead of focusing on the Lewis and Clark expedition, the authors concentrate on what Lewis was doing immediately before and after the journey through Western territory. They assess his role as a natural scientist and as governor of the Louisiana Territory. His lifelong mentor, Thomas Jefferson, thrust the latter role upon Lewis during a time of crisis. As Danisi and Jackson reveal, he would much rather have devoted this time compiling his notes and scientific findings into a vivid narrative of the expedition's adventures. Finally, using medical documentation, the book reveals the actual cause of Lewis's untimely death. The authors address both the conspiracy theories regarding murder as the cause of Lewis's death and the longstanding belief that he committed suicide. The Meriwether Lewis that emerges from this thoroughly researched biography is a man of honorable intentions who met severe challenges and handled difficult confrontations with patience and diplomacy. Both professional historians and armchair devotees of American history will want to add this important new work to their libraries.

Vols. for 1892-1941 contain the transactions and proceedings of the society.

The Lewis and Clark expedition is both one of the greatest geographical adventures undertaken by Americans and one of the best documented at the time. The University of Nebraska Press edition of the Journals of Lewis and Clark now reaches volume 10 of the projected 13 that will contain the complete record of the expedition. In order that the fullest record possible be kept of the expedition, captains Lewis and Clark required their sergeants to keep journals to compensate for possible loss of the captains' own accounts. The sergeants' accounts extend and corroborate the journals of Lewis and Clark and contribute to the full record of the expedition. Volume 10 contains the journal of expedition member Sergeant Patrick Gass. Gass was promoted to sergeant on the expedition to fill the place of the deceased Charles Floyd. His journal was subsequently published and proved quite popular: it went through six editions in six years. A skilled carpenter, Gass was almost certainly responsible for supervising the building of Forts Mandan and Clatsop; his records of those forts are particularly detailed and useful. Gass was to live until 1870, the last survivor of the expedition and the one who lived to see transcontinental communication fulfill the promise of the expedition. Gary E. Moulton is a professor of history at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and recipient of the J. Franklin Jameson Award of the American Historical Association for the editing of these journals.

This landmark volume contains the most complete listing and presentation of the plant specimens collected by the Lewis and Clark expedition. All but one of the plants were collected by Meriwether Lewis, the expedition?s botanist. The collection, how-ever, was nearly lost over the years when it was scattered among various botanists who intended to catalog the expedition?s scientific discoveries. Fortunately, for many years the specimens have been in the care of major institutions, principally the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia. The 239 extant items are brought together in one book for the first time. This indispensable volume will assist researchers and enthusiasts hoping to identify each plant?s date and place of collection and other information such as plant habitat and ethnobotanical use.

The first book to examine the iconic depiction of evolution, the “march of progress,” and its role in shaping our understanding of how humans evolved We are all familiar with the “march of progress,” the representation of evolution that depicts a series of apelike creatures becoming progressively taller and more erect before finally reaching the upright human form. Its emphasis on linear progress has had a decisive impact on public understanding of evolution, yet the image contradicts modern scientific conceptions of evolution as complex and branching. This book is the first to examine the origins and history of this ubiquitous and hugely consequential illustration. In a story spanning more than a century, from Victorian Britain to America in the Space Age, Gowan Dawson traces the interconnected histories of the two most important versions of the image: the frontispiece to Thomas Henry Huxley’s Evidence as to Man’s Place in Nature (1863) and “The Road to Homo Sapiens,” a fold-out illustration in the best-selling book Early Man (1965). Dawson explores how the recurring appearances of this image pointed to shifting scientific and public perspectives on human evolution, as well as indicated novel artistic approaches and advancements in technology.