Exploring Unknown Worlds

by Brian “Fox” Ellis

Lewiswas born just down the road from Thomas Jefferson’s estate Monticello. Our third president became a second father to Lewis when Lewis’ father was killed in the American Revolution. Jefferson helped spark Lewis’ interest in natural history. Jefferson’s extensive library became a foundation for Lewis’ education. At a time when the Blue Ridge Mountains were the edge of the known world, he often pushed beyond that edge. The Appalachian Mountain forests became his playground. He would often wander into the woods for days at a time hunting, and harvesting the wild berries and nuts he found there. His mother was known as an herb doctor, an herbalist, who would offer up a plant for whatever ailed you. She taught him which plants were medicine, which were edible, and which were poisonous.

As a young man he joined the military, eventually climbing to the rank of Captain. While fighting in the Ohio Territory he met William Clark, who would later become his co-commander in The Corps of Discovery.

Thomas Jefferson invited Lewis to become his aide-de-camp and personal secretary when he was elected president. Lewis moved into the White House before it was finished. He put up a tent because the roof leaked and he slept on his cot because there were still dirt floors.

The best part of living in the White House would have been having Thomas Jefferson as a mentor and friend. Jefferson had one of the best scientific minds in early American History.

Jefferson helped to create the Philadelphia Philosophical Society. When he chose Lewis to lead the expedition to the West he sent Lewis to Philadelphia to study science with these men. Well-educated, well-traveled, and well-read, it is easy to imagine them having long conversations late into the night, discussing science, American Indians, the Western Frontier, and the natural world.

Jefferson had named a prehistoric species of Giant Sloth Bear, megalonyx jeffersonii. He hoped Lewis would find a sloth bear and saber-toothed cat in the West. When Jefferson hired Lewis to lead The Corps of Discovery he ordered him to look for prehistoric beasts, to build friendly relations with the American Indians, to collect soil samples, plants and animals. The Corps of Discovery was first and foremost a scientific expedition.

By all accounts Lewis and Clark shared the leadership of the expedition as a well-matched team. Though all of the men were ordered to keep journals, Lewis’ journal is both the most poetic and scientific. The journey itself was like a modern trip to the moon. Much of the time they were in territory unknown to the Western world, unsure if the Natives would be hostile or friendly.

By all accounts the Corps of Discovery returned successful; they survived, only one man died, and they made hundreds of discoveries of new trees, flowers, mammals, birds, fish, insects, and they even collected more than 60 soil samples.

Tragically, when they returned, Meriwether Lewis never adjusted to his appointment as Governor of the Louisiana Territory. He became mired in the political morass of the newly expanding west. There is some debate about whether he was murdered or committed suicide; we may never know. But his name will always be paired with his good friend as the leader of The Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Daytime Programs

Adult Program: Lewis and Clark His-Story and Natural His-Story, too

Thursday, July 13, 2023 at 3:30 p.m.

Ashland County Senior Citizen Center

Blending creative writing ideas with interactive storytelling, this participatory workshop will challenge the audience to rethink their point of view on this important event in American History. Using techniques that can be applied to any chapter of history, participants will be given an opportunity to transform research notes into dynamic performances. Using Lewis’ journals we will also explore the scientific findings of the Corps of Discovery, celebrating the diverse flora and fauna of the American West through exciting stories and songs.

Youth Program: Tribal Tales from the River’s Edge

Friday, July 14, 2023 at 10 a.m.

YMCA Youth Camp at Myers Memorial Band Shell

Note: Rain site location is the Ashland YMCA

Before ethnology was a scientific discipline, Lewis and Clark collected stories, songs, and artifacts from the dozens of distinct cultures they encountered in their journey west. They kept detailed notes on tribal customs and collected vocabulary to create a rough outline of a dictionary of Indian Languages. In this dynamic performance, Fox shares both folklore and true history from the American Indians met along the way. The audience sees something of the transformation of the Corps of Discovery as they adapted to Native American lifeways and they hear about life before the white man came. Not once, but several times, the journey would have failed if not for the kindness of Native Americans.

ABOUT BRIAN “FOX” ELLIS

Fox is a storyteller, author, and freelance historian. He recently took a full-time position as the Membership and Outreach Coordinator for the Illinois Audubon Society. Fox portrayed John James Audubon at Ashland Chautauqua in 2019. He portrays more than a dozen historical characters including Charles Darwin, Walt Whitman, Edgar Allan Poe, and Francis of Assisi. He is also the author of more than 30 books including 10 Chautauqua-style biographies in his series History in Person, which are available on Amazon and his YouTube Channel. He attended Oberlin College and holds a BA degree from Wilmington College in Southern Ohio.

OPENING ACT: MIKE GORRELL

As a solo artist, Mike Gorrell performs a wide range of material. His repertoire includes Country, Bluegrass, Folk, and classic Rock & Roll. He has performed in country and bluegrass bands all over the United States, Canada, and Great Britain. His music is fresh and aged, relaxing and exhilarating, familiar and, at the same time, unique. Hopefully, you will hear songs you can sing along with and some you have never heard that you will enjoy. Family style humor and a fast-paced stage show are trademarks of what you can expect from his performances. nwtbluegrass.com

Lewis Bibliography

Cutright, Paul Russell. Lewis and Clark Pioneering Naturalists Lincoln: University of Nebraska, 2003.

DeVoto, Bernard. The Journals of Lewis and Clark New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1997.

Ellis, Brian “Fox”. Meriwether Lewis and the Corps of Discovery. Bishop Hill: IL: Fox Tales, 2021.

Gilman, Carolyn. Lewis and Clark Across the Divide. Washington DC: The Smithsonian Institution, 2003.

Gragg, Rod. Lewis And Clark: On the Trail of Discovery: The Journey That Shaped America, A Museum in a Book. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Books, 2003.

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