|
Price: $39.95
To order this book, please use the order
form
By his military exploits during the Revolutionary
War George Rogers Clark pushed the boundary of the new
United States of America to the Mississippi River, and
in doing so, founded Louisville and helped establish
Kentucky. But he remains a largely unknown figure in
American history.
While his Illinois campaign is legendary, his post-Revolution
activities have frustrated historians wedded to an America-first
perspective. Awarded by the French Revolutionary government
the title of commander-in-chief of the Revolutionary
Legions of the Mississippi, Clark continued to press
westward, looking across the Mississippi to the establishment
of a free North American republic.
His correspondence with Patrick Henry and George Washington
center on military directives, but with "citizens"
Paine and Genet, he grappled with the restrictions of
an emerging republic. He saved his favorite topics,
natural history and Indian culture, for Thomas Jefferson.
He prepared the way for his younger brother, William
Clark, to join Meriweather Lewis as co-leader of the
Corps of Discovery to the Pacific coast in 1803, having
considered the possibility of the journey for Jefferson
two decades before the Louisiana Purchase.
Clark's journey ended at Locust Grove,
the 693-acre estate of his sister and brother-in-law,
Lucy and William Croghan, on the Ohio River five miles
above the Falls, the site of Louisville. Irish immigrant
nephew of George Croghan, the Crown's enigmatic deputy
Indian supervisor, William Croghan fought for the patriot
cause ot Trenton and spent the winter of 1777-1778 at
Valley Forge with Washington before being taken prisoner
at Charleston. After the War, Croghan became Clark's
deputy surveyor of military lands for the Virginia State
Line, enabling him to acquire some 54,000 acres on the
edge of the American frontier. His marriage to Clark's
sister solidified his position in society and eventually
brought the aging warrior to the shelter of his large
household.
James Monroe, Andrew Jackson, and Zachary
Taylor were guests at Locust Grove, as was William Clark
upon his return from the Pacific with Lewis in 1806.
General George Rogers Clark died at Locust Grove in
1818.
Because of its association with these
national figures, the house museum and 55-acre grounds
were designated a National Historic Landmark in 1986.
George Rogers Clark and Locust Grove recounts
the remarkable restoration of this American landmark
and the lives of both the extraordinary and ordinary
people connected to it.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
Gwynne Tuell Potts is a former
Historic Locust Grove executive director and high school
history teacher. A native Louisvillian, her ancestors
rode with George Rogers Clark in Dunmore's War and were
among the first settlers who accompanied Clark to Corn
Island in May 1778. An undergraduate and graduate history
student at Western Kentucky University, she remains
active in local preservation and conservation issues
through participation in the Historic Locust Grove and
Blackacre Foundation Boards of Directors.
Samuel W. Thomas was involved
in the restoration of Locust Grove and served as the
museum's first curator. The native of Philadelphia is
a descendent of George Mason, who, with Thomas Jefferson
and George Wythe, authorized George Rogers Clark's Illinois
campaign. A chemistry graduate of the University of
Louisville, Dr. Thomas has since authored articles and
books on Louisville history and was archivist of Jefferson
County and active in preservation projects.
To order this book, please use the order
form
To see other books available from Historic
Locust Grove, click
here
|
|
