Past Exhibits: > Alexander Wilson: Father of American Ornithology
Alexander Wilson: Father of American Ornithology
Learn about the origins of ornithology in America as we profile the life and work of the “Father of American Ornithology,” Alexander Wilson. In his short and intensely productive life, he recorded, through drawings, prose and poetry, his impressions of America’s birds. His American Ornithology was published in nine volumes; from 1808-1814, and was a landmark work of early American natural history. Starting life with few advantages and with little else but a drive to better himself, soon after arriving in America from Scotland at the age of 28, he fixed on the idea of producing the first comprehensive record of American birds. In little more than seven years, Wilson produced a truly important work of early American natural history. His nine-volume work was composed of individual essays on 293 birds and 315 were portrayed in the 76 plates. Not an artist by training or talent, his drawings had an honest and natural realism.
