Welcome to Henry's Travel Blog! |
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Although he kept detailed business papers, Missouri Botanical Garden founder Henry Shaw left little personal material for biographers to consider in analyzing his life. One of the few items which remain is a series of five journals. Following his retirement from the hardware business in 1840, Shaw traveled abroad and made notes, recollections, and even sketches in these small bound books. Join us as we chart Henry's journey to Europe and beyond. |
| Shaw's variable spellings, punctuation, and grammar, preserved throughout, are typical even for well-educated gentlemen in the 19th Century. Important note (4/14/09): The entries from March 11, 2009 through April 8, 2009, correspond to recently discovered text from Henry Shaw's journal. They will be posted online under the correct dates to preserve chronological accuracy. | |
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January 2-4, 1842: Snow and Venice |
A change in the weather at last - cold wind with snow which melts as it falls in the narrow streets of Venice. The number of men carefully scraping up the snow in the square of St. Mark is in consequence of the will of some benevolent old lady leaving money to be so expended. Perhaps the same who made a legacy to feed the pigeons that are constantly flying about the square -
I was born on July 24, 1800, in Sheffield, England. On May 3, 1819, I arrived at a small French village on the Mississippi called St. Louis. I owned a hardware store and worked there from 1819 to 1840. In 1840, I retired and traveled around the world. In 1851, after seeing the beautiful Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, outside London and the Chatsworth gardens in Devonshire, I decided to create my own garden in St. Louis.
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