Non Fiction
2 Non-Fiction Books About United States Exploring Expedition, 1838–1842
Histories, biographies and reference works are listed separately from the historical novels above.
Phase
United States Exploring Expedition, 1838–1842
1838–1842 CE
The United States Exploring Expedition departed in 1838 under Lieutenant Charles Wilkes with six vessels and a large naval and scientific complement. It surveyed Pacific islands, Antarctic waters, the Columbia River and other coastlines while gathering extensive natural-history and ethnographic collections.
The expedition greatly expanded American cartography and science, and its collections contributed to the development of the Smithsonian Institution. Its achievements were accompanied by shipwreck, violent encounters, disciplinary disputes and deep resentment of Wilkes’s authoritarian command.
For books and historical fiction, the expedition offers global exploration, naval routine, scientific collecting and leadership under pressure. Nathaniel Philbrick’s Sea of Glory reconstructs the voyage, while The Private Journal of William Reynolds provides a participant’s immediate account.
