Read Online This Strange Wilderness: The Life and Art of John James Audubon by Nancy Plain - Free Book Online

Glossary
    Bachman, John ( 1790 – 1874 ): An American clergyman and naturalist who helped John James Audubon with The Birds of America and The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America .
    banding: The process of fastening a band around a bird’s leg to enable future identification.
    biology: The scientific study of living things, mostly plant and animal life.
    Blackfoot: An Indian nation of the Upper Missouri country and Canada.
    botany: The scientific study of plant life.
    brine: Salted water.
    camera lucida: A sketching device that uses a prism and a magnifying glass to project an image onto a piece of paper.
    Clay, Henry ( 1777 – 1852 ): A politician and statesman who held office in both houses of Congress, served as secretary of state, and won fame for his efforts to avoid civil war.
    Cuvier, Baron Georges ( 1769 – 1832 ): A French naturalist known for major contributions to the fields of comparative anatomy and animal taxonomy.
    Darwin, Charles ( 1809 – 82 ): The English naturalist who developed the theory of evolution by natural selection.
    engraving: The process of cutting images into a plate, usually copper. In Audubon’s time, engraving allowed artwork to be copied and printed for use as illustrations.
    flatboat: A boat with a flat bottom and squared ends, used for river travel in the nineteenth century.
    forage: To search for food.
    French Revolution: The violent upheaval in France, lasting from 1789 to 1799, that replaced the monarchy with a democratic form of government.
    Grinnell, George Bird ( 1849 – 1938 ): An American naturalist and writer who helped found the Audubon Society and establish Glacier National Park in Montana.
    grog: An alcoholic drink, usually rum.
    Harrison, William Henry ( 1773 – 1841 ): Ninth president of the United States, who died thirty days after his inauguration.
    Houston, Sam ( 1793 – 1863 ): The general famous for his 1836 victory in the Mexican-American War and who also served two terms as president of the Republic of Texas.
    Irving, Washington ( 1783 – 1859 ): A writer of essays, satires, biographies, and fiction who is most famous for his stories “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”
    Jackson, Andrew ( 1767 – 1845 ): A general during the War of 1812, an Indian fighter, and the seventh president of the United States, serving two terms, from 1829 to 1837.
    keelboat: A boat with a keel and pointed ends that was used for river travel in the nineteenth century.
    Lewis and Clark Expedition: Meriwether Lewis and William Clark led the famous expedition, from 1804 to 1806, up the Missouri River to the Pacific Ocean.
    Linnaeus, Carl ( 1707 – 78 ): The Swedish scientist who developed the modern system of taxonomy, naming and classifying plants and animals.
    lithography: The process of cutting images into a stone plate and printing them. After the late 1830s, lithography became more popular than engraving for making copies of pictures.
    mackinaw: A flat-bottomed boat that can be propelled either by oar power or by sails.
    Mandan: An Indian tribe living in North Dakota, along the Missouri River. This tribe was almost destroyed by smallpox in the 1830s.
    menagerie: A collection of animals, usually wild ones.
    natural history: The study of the natural world’s plant and animal life, as well as the earth’s geology.
    naturalist: One who studies nature, especially plants and animals.
    New Madrid earthquake: A series of earthquakes occurring in 1811 and 1812 along the Mississippi River. Felt over a wide area, they are the strongest ever recorded in the region.
    Nuttall, Thomas ( 1786 – 1859 ): An English botanist and ornithologist who, along with John Townsend, discovered American bird species during a western expedition from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean.
    Oregon Trail: The path along the Platte River that pioneers followed during America’s period of westward expansion.
    ornithology: The study of birds.
    quadrupeds: Four-legged