Jonathan Carver
Jonathan Carver was an American explorer and officer born in Weymouth, Massachusetts, into a relatively affluent family. Following the death of his father when he was seventeen, Carver's education was supported by an uncle. He married Abigail Robbins in 1846 and shortly after enlisted in the military, gaining recognition for his service during the French and Indian War, including a notable promotion to captain. In 1766, Carver was commissioned to explore the Great Lakes region, where he engaged in trade with Indigenous peoples and meticulously charted the area, particularly around Lake Superior. His detailed accounts culminated in the publication of "Travels Through the Interior Parts of North America" in 1778, which achieved best-seller status despite Carver receiving little financial reward. Although he faced challenges in his later life, including a decline in reputation and unsuccessful subsequent publications, his work significantly influenced later literary movements, especially the Romantic poets. His writings continue to be recognized for their impact on the appreciation of nature and exploration.
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Jonathan Carver
Explorer
- Born: April 13, 1710
- Birthplace: Weymouth, Massachusetts
- Died: January 31, 1780
- Place of death: London, England
Biography
Jonathan Carver was born in Weymouth, Massachusetts, to a fairly well-to-do family. After later moving the family to Canterbury, Connecticut, Carver’s father died when Jonathan was seventeen years old. One of Carver’s uncles saw to his education. Carver married Abigail Robbins in 1846 and shortly thereafter enlisted in the army, later to become an officer. He fought during the French and Indian War and survived the massacre of Fort William Henry in 1757. He was afterward promoted to lieutenant and eventually to captain; his service in combat throughout the war was notable enough that General Thomas Gage remarked upon his skills and capability.
In 1766, Carver’s commanding officer Major Robert Rogers commissioned him to embark upon missions of exploration. Trading with Indians throughout his journeys, Carver explored the Great Lakes from Michigan through Wisconsin and Minnesota, particularly spending time charting and examining the upper shores of Lake Superior.
Upon completing his journeys, Carver had hopes that his journals might be published, but he was disappointed in his endeavor. In 1769, he sailed for London to petition the crown for reimbursement for his journeys on behalf of the government. Although the government declined to reimburse all of Carver’s expenses, he was allowed to publish his journals. His Travels Through the Interior Parts of North America in the Years 1766, 1767, and 1768 was published in 1778. It now seems likely that he paid hacks to help him edit and refine the journals; it also seems likely now that many of his descriptions of native customs, flora, and fauna were plagiarized from other sources.
Although Carver’s book became a best seller, he saw very little financial reward for its success. He tried to maintain his position as an explorer and as a chronicler of exploration by both petitioning for more funded expeditions and releasing the scientific book, Treatise on the Culture of the Tobacco Plant. This book never found the audience his first book did.
Carver would remain in England the rest of his life, and he took another wife, the widow Mary Harris, while his first wife remained in the American colonies. Despite Carver’s eventual and largely posthumous fall from grace, his Travels Through the Interior Parts of North America in the Years 1766, 1767, and 1768 would be profoundly influential on the Romantic poets and writers of the next few generations, who saw something in his journals that spoke to their own reverence for nature and the natural world. The book was an international success, translated into many languages, and would be published in more than fifty editions in the years following its initial publication.