George William Featherstonhaugh
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[edit] Born April 9, 1780 in London
Born to parents, George and Dorothy Simpson Featherstonhaugh. He grew up at Scarborough, an ancient city on the North Sea 221 miles from London and 43 miles from York. Featherstonhaugh liked to climb cliffs, collect fossils, and gathering wild bird eggs to sell. He was adept at writing and became a fellow of the Geological Society and of the Royal Society of London.[1]
[edit] In 1806 he came to the United States
He planned to study the languages of the Indigenous people. He married Sarah Duane of Schenectady, New York, on November 6, 1808. They had four children: James, Ann, George Jr., and Georgianna. He farmed, organized the first New York Board of Agriculture, and advocated the building of steam railroads in the United States. Difficulty experienced in the economic transportation of his crops led Featherstonhaugh to advocate a steam railroad that would connect the Hudson River at Albany, New York with the navigable Mohawk River at Schenectady. His acquaintance with George Stephenson (1781–1848) facilitated his quest. Ten years were spent in an attempt to educate the public for the experiment and it was not until December, 1825, that Featherstonhaugh was determined to apply for a charter. This was granted on April 17, 1826.[2]
After the death of his wife and two daughters, he returned to England in 1826. He later returned to the States to Philadelphia and, on January 28, 1831, married Charlotte Williams Carter in Schenectady County, New York. They had three children: Albany, Georgiannia, and Henry.[1]
Construction of the railroad began on July 29, 1830, and one year later the road was completed from Engine hill (near the top of Crane Street hill) in Schenectady to Lydius street in the western suburb of Albany. Formal opening of the road was on August 13, 1831, when the DeWitt Clinton pulled the first train to Schenectady.[2]
The Albany and Schenectady Railroad justified Featherstonhaugh's vision, and made the Mohawk Valley the center of early railroad construction in New York State. In 1832 the Saratoga and Schenectady Rail Road was completed, the Schenectady terminus being at what is now Water and Railroad Streets.[2]
[edit] Featherstonhaugh as explorer
After acquiring a vast quantity of unexplored land in the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the government sought to document the mineral resources of the territory. In 1834, Featherstonhaugh, newly appointed as the first U.S. government geologist, was instructed to examine the elevated country between the Missouri and Red rivers and report back to Colonel John James Abert of the Topographical Bureau.[1]
With his son George Jr. as his assistant, he took stagecoaches from Baltimore, Maryland, to St. Louis, Missouri. In St. Louis, they purchased a horse they named “Missouri” and a Dearborn wagon for the travel into Arkansas.[1]
In 1835, Featherstonhaugh traveled from Green Bay, Wisconsin to the Wisconsin River, then upstream to Prairie du Chien, and into the Mississippi River. He paddled up the Mississippi, passing the St. Croix River and the Minnesota River, stopping at Carver's Cave and Saint Anthony Falls.[3]
[edit] Back to England
Featherstonhaugh returned to England in 1838 with his wife and children. He was appointed consul from the British government to France and spent much time writing and publishing the journals of his travels in the United States. He died in Le Havre, France, 28 September 1866, and is buried at Tunbridge Wells, England.
[edit] His work
- Report of a Geological Reconnaissance made in 1835 from the Seat of Government by the way of Green Bay and the Wisconsin Territory to the Coteau du Prairie, an Elevated Ridge Dividing the Missouri from the Saint Peters River - 1836
- Observations on the Ashburton Treaty - 1842
- Excursion Through the Slave States - 1844
- A Canoe Voyage up the Minnay Sotar - 1847
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Akridge, Scott (2006-11-02). The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture. White County Historical Society. The Central Arkansas Library System. Retrieved on 2006-11-27.
- ^ a b c Growing With Schenectady - American Locomotive Company. The story of a century of locomotive building in Schenectady. The Schenectady Digital History Archive (1972). Retrieved on 2006-11-27.
- ^ Featherstonhaugh, George (1847). A Canoe Voyage Up the Minnay Sotor. George William Featherstonhaugh 1835. Wisconsin Electronic Reader. Retrieved on 2006-11-27.
