Lewis County Herald - Serving Hohenwald, Lewis County Tennessee Since 1898

Lewis County Public Library and Archives offered residents an opportunity to get lost in the owl-some world of ornithology and local history when it hosted speaker Shannon Kelly on October 10, 2023. Kelly, who is an Interpretive Resource Specialist at the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center and Fort Mandan State Historic Site in North Dakota, discussed the remarkable bond between Meriwether Lewis and Alexander Wilson and their contributions to the scientific field of ornithology.

Wilson, who is known as the father of American ornithology, was assisting Lewis with preparing his research on the birds discovered during the Lewis and Clark Expedition for publication at the time of Lewis's death. In addition to their remarkable friendship, Kelly highlighted some of more notable birds discovered individually by Lewis and Wilson and discussed their habitats, birdsongs, and other characteristics.

Shannon Kelly concluded the entertaining evening by speaking about Alexander Wilson's trip down the Natchez Trace and his visit to Grinder's Stand. Wilson was the only friend of Meriwether Lewis known to have visited the Meriwether Lewis grave and documented Priscilla Grinder's account. This event coincided with the 214th anniversary of Meriwether Lewis arriving at Grinder's Stand in 1809 and was co-hosted by the Meriwether Lewis Chapter of the Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation.