Alexander Wilson: The Scot Who Founded American Ornithology

459 Pages·2013·5.8 MB·English

by  Edward H. Burtt Jr.

Alexander Wilson

AlexAnder Wilson
The Scot Who Founded American Ornithology
EdWArd H. Burtt, Jr.
WilliAm E. dAvis, Jr.
The Belknap Press of
Harvard University Press
Cambridge, Massachusetts
London, England
2013
Frontispiece: Portrait of Alexander Wilson attributed to thomas sully,
most likely painted around the time of Wilson’s election to the American Philosophical
society in 1812. (From the collection of the American Philosophical society,
gift of dr. Nathaniel Chapman, 1822.)
Copyright © 2013 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College
All rights reserved
Printed in Canada
Book design by dean Bornstein
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Burtt, Edward H., Jr., 1948–
Alexander Wilson : the scot who founded American ornithology /
Edward H. Burtt, Jr., William E. davis, Jr.
pages cm
includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-674-07255-8 (alk. paper)
1. Wilson, Alexander, 1766–1813. 2. Ornithologists—united states—Biography.
3. Ornithology—united states—History. 4. Wilson, Alexander, 1766–1813. American
ornithology—illustrations. 5. Birds—united states—Pictorial works. i. davis, William
E., Jr., 1936– ii. title.
Ql31.W7B87 2013
598.092—dc23
[B] 2012036742
To my best friend, Thelma, with love—Jed
} } }
To my wife, Betsy Davis, with love—Ted

Contents
Preface . ix
1. themes in Wilson’s life and Writings . 1
2. A varied life . 13
3. illustrating American Ornithology . 63
4. Pioneer Ornithologist . 281
5. Wilson’s legacy . 331
Appendix A. On the shoulders of Giants:
Wilson’s Predecessors . 355
Appendix B. Wilson’s Contemporaries and Correspondents . 385
Notes . 413
selected Bibliography . 429
Acknowledgments . 433
index . 437

Preface
Over the last ten years our colleagues, students, friends, and families occa-
sionally asked, “What are you doing?” to which we responded enthusiastical-
ly, “Writing a book about Alexander Wilson: naturalist, illustrator, and Father
of American Ornithology.” that response usually elicited a noncommittal
“how interesting” or occasionally, bewilderment followed by “Wasn’t that
Audubon?” rarely genuine interest led to the question, “Was Wilson’s War-
bler named after him?” the species in question might be Wilson’s storm-
Petrel, Wilson’s snipe, Wilson’s Plover, or Wilson’s Phalarope. Wilson has
more species named after him than any other American ornithologist, one
measure of his stature among American ornithologists.
to provide context for understanding Wilson’s achievement, the first
chapter explores themes in Wilson’s life, writings, art, and science. the
second chapter is a brief biography. Chapter 3 explains the publication pro-
cess of the early nineteenth century. But at its core this chapter and the book
are about Wilson’s observations of birds and the artwork he created for the
plates in his nine-volume American Ornithology. the drawings vary from a
few lines and notes penciled in the field to remind him of shape and color—
for example, the simple sketch of a Canvasback—to detailed pen, ink, and
watercolor paintings, such as his perched red-tailed Hawk, a stunning work
of art. most of Wilson’s drawings and draft plates are reproduced here for
the first time. Collectively they are witness to his artistic achievement, his
development as an artist, his method of working, his observational skill, and
his scientific insight. the detail and elegance of his portraits are astonishing,
especially when you realize that the knowledge portrayed in these illustra-
tions was based on Wilson’s own discoveries, that many of these species were
first described by him, and that the ecology and behavior evident in the art-
work were unknown until he observed and illustrated them.
Beyond his artistic achievements, Wilson wrote at length about the ecol-
. ix .