VOYAGE DES CAPITAINES LEWIS ET CLARKE DEPUIS L'EMBOUCHURE DU MISSOURI, JUSQU'À L'ENTRÉE DE LA COLOMBIA DANS L'OCÉAN PACIFIQUE; FAIT DANS LES ANNÉES 1804, 1805 ET 1806

(LEWIS AND CLARK EXPEDITION). GASS, PATRICK

Edité par Chez Arthus-Bertrand, Paris, 1810

A propos de cet article

205 x 128 mm. (8 x 5"). xviii, 443, [1] pp.Translated into French by A. J. N. Lallemant. Contemporary flamed sheep, covers with thick and thin gilt rule border, smooth spine divided into panels by metope and pentaglyph roll, panels either with rows of interlocking gilt circles or a gilt compass ornament, two black morocco labels, marbled endpapers. Folding engraved map by J. B. Tardieu. Wagner-Camp-Becker 6:3; Howes G-77; Sabin 26742; Graff Collection 1519; Wheat Trans-Mississippi 300. Very small loss to head of rear joint, boards faintly abraded, but the binding entirely solid and pleasing; a handful of leaves with small marginal tears or paper flaws (one slightly larger but not affecting text), approximately one-third of volume very mildly browned, other trivial imperfections, but still an excellent copy, extremely clean and fresh internally. Issued three years after the original English text, this is the initial printing in French and the first in any foreign language of an important firsthand account of the Lewis and Clark voyage of discovery, written by a key figure both during and after the company s undertaking; it is also and crucially the first edition to include a map of the expedition. Tardieu's map, the first to mention the names Lewis and Clark, noted important landmarks on the journey, including the formidable Rocky Mountains, the Columbia River, and Fort Clatsop on the Pacific Coast, where the expedition spent the winter of 1805-06. Our French edition also adds two letters of Clark not appearing in other editions of Gass one to William Henry Harrison (2 April 1805 from Fort Mandan) and one to Clark s brother (23 September 1806) on the day the six-month return journey came to an end. Wheat observes that this work held special interest for the French, as it provided much information about lands that had, until the Louisiana Purchase, been part of their domain. A carpenter by training, Patrick Gass (1771-1870) was in charge of constructing winter accommodations for the party, and his knowledge of building informs his observations here about forts and native architecture. This account was based on journals he kept during the explorations, and it was an immediate success upon its first publication in Pittsburgh in 1807. The American public was hungry for information about the Western frontier, and their curiosity was shared by Europeans, particularly those considering emigration to the New World. Wagner-Camp observes that Gass "became one of the best-known members of the expedition for several reasons: his key role as sergeant brought his name up frequently in the journals of Lewis and Clark; his account was the first to be published; he was the first to have a biography written about him; and finally, he outlived the other members of the Corps of Discovery by decades," dying at the age of 98.

N° de réf. du vendeur ST20849

Détails bibliographiques

• Titre: VOYAGE DES CAPITAINES LEWIS ET CLARKE DEPUIS L'EMBOUCHURE DU MISSOURI, JUSQU'À L'ENTRÉE DE LA COLOMBIA DANS L'OCÉAN PACIFIQUE; FAIT DANS LES ANNÉES 1804, 1805 ET 1806
• Éditeur: Chez Arthus-Bertrand, Paris
• Date de parution: 1810
• Édition: First Edition in French.
• Catalogues du vendeur:
  • Travel, Exploration, Maps, & Atlases
  • Americana