n the spring of 1861, Henry Thoreau was in poor health. He had been suffering from a severe cold since winter but by May it had developed into bronchitis. Then
it become a case of acute tuberculosis. Doctors feared for Thoreau's life and it was decided that a change of climate was needed if Thoreau was to have any chance for a full recovery.

At first Thoreau thought that a trip to the West Indies would help, but he eventually decided on a trip to Minnesota. Why? Because Thoreau had never been that far west, and he decided that Minnesota's climate would be good for him.Besides, the trip would also give Thoreau an opportunity to study the flora, fauna and Indians of the rapidly vanishing frontier.

But Thoreau was feeble and could not make the trip alone. He asked his usual traveling companion, Ellery Channing, to accompany him but Channing was typically non-committal to the idea. Thoreau asked a more reliable companion, Harry Blake of Worcester, but Blake could not go on such short notice. Finally, it was decided that 17 year-old Horace Mann, Jr. would go west with Thoreau. Mann was a good friend of Henry's and quite the naturalist as well. He would be the perfect companion for Thoreau on his trip!

The duo left Concord on May 11,1861. This would turn out to be the longest and farthest trip of Thoreau's life. By the time the pair returned to Concord their journey would last 2 months and cover 3000 miles.

After spending two days in Worcester with Blake they took the train to Albany and then on to Niagara Falls, where they arrived on May 14. They spent five days at the Falls, exploring the area and hoping that Channing would change his mind and catch up with them there, which he didn't.In his journal, Thoreau estimated the population of Niagara Falls, New York to be "about 5000". In a letter home, Mann wrote, "Mr. Thoreau seems to feel better already, and I think that he will get better before long."

Next the pair went across Lower Ontario to Detroit and arrived in Chicago on May 21. They spent two days in Chicago and Thoreau noted that the town was "14 feet above the Lake" and that Chicago was "built chiefly of limestone from forty miles" away.

On May 23 Thoreau and Mann took "the cars" to Dunleith (now East Dubuque)Illinois. They were now on the prairie, and Thoreau wrote, "Distances on the prairie deceptive. A stack of wheat straw looks like a hill on the horizon 1/4 or 1/2 mile off. It stands so bold and high." He was not so impressed with the inhabitants of Dunleith, and compared them to "mice nesting in a wheatstack."

The journey continued. Next on the itinerary was a river boat ride up the Mississippi, with the duo arriving in St. Paul on May 26. A nine mile stage coach ride to St. Anthony followed and they arrived safely at the "Tremont House" later that morning.

Thoreau and Mann would stay in the Twin City area for nearly a month, exploring not only the prairie and forests of the mid-west but also its libraries! In Minneapolis Thoreau met the State Geologist, Dr. Charles L. Andrews, and they spent many hours together. Thoreau read local and regional histories as well as the Wisconsin and Minnesota State Agricultural Reports. He noted casually in his journal that "bison last seen east of the Mississippi in 1832 and last beaver killed in south part of Wisconsin in 1819."

As he had done the entire trip, Thoreau kept detailed notes on the plants, animals and other natural phenomena of the region. June 11, 1861 was a memorable day for him. While staying at "Mrs. Hamilton's exclusive boarding house" he searched "faithfully" around Lake Calhoun for the wild crab apple. His persistence paid off and he discovered "quite a cluster" of crab apple trees behind the boarding house. This apple was one of the reasons why Thoreau went west in the first place, and he excitedly recorded the find in his journal. Needless to say, specimens of the apple returned to Concord with Thoreau and Mann.

On June 12 an advertisement in the St. Paul Pioneer and Democrat read:

Grand Pleasure Excursion to the Sioux Agency! This will afford a good opportunity to visit this splendid region...and to witness the payment of nearly 5000 Indians!

The local steamboat line had yearly trips up the Minnesota River in order for tourists to witness the annual payment of Government annuities to the Sioux Nation. By luck Thoreau and Mann were in town at just the right time for this yearly adventure! Thoreau, of course, had a lifelong interest in Indians and this was a chance he could not pass up.He and Mann paid the $10 round-trip fare to Redwood, Minnesota in order to witness "the grand Indian Council."

They left St. Paul on the steamboat Frank Steele on June 17. Once they arrived in Redwood Thoreau wrote about the "5000 Indians" he saw there. He detailed how the Sioux started fires with flint and steel and also commented on an Indian dance, "keep good time, move feet and shoulders, one or both."

Thoreau's best descriptions of Indian life were in a letter to Frank Sanborn in Concord. "Redwood is a mere locality" he wrote,"scarcely an Indian village.We [are]now fairly on the great plains...buffalo was said to be feeding within 25-30 miles."

Unlike most 19th Century observers, Thoreau was sympathetic to the Indians' plight. "They were quite dissatisfied with the white man's treatment of them & probably have reason to be so," he astutely observed. Witnessing a tribal council he wrote, "Speeches made on both sides...Indians, as usual, having the advantage in truth and earnestness [over the white man]."

Less than a year later, these same Sioux would be involved in the 1862 Dakota War against the U.S. Army. Most of the buildings at Redwood would be burned down during the revolt.

Mann was also writing home to Concord and in a letter to his mother he mentioned Thoreau's worsening cough, saying that "he can raise more and it does not hinder his sleeping so much." Thoreau also seemed to have some "little trouble with water in the bowels...though that is of no account." Thoreau didn't seem to be getting better, but Mann either did not notice or was putting on a brave face.

Thoreau's excursion up the Minnesota did not go unnoticed. A Minneapolis newspaper covered the events aboard the Frank Steele and listed among the "very choice and select company" one "Henry D. Thoreau, Esq., the celebrated abolitionist."

By the end of June it was obvious that Thoreau's health was not improving. Mann assured his mother in letter after letter that Thoreau was "getting along pretty well" but it seems that Thoreau was, in fact, getting worse. Not surprising, considering the almost non-stop touring that they were involved in! The trip up the Minnesota River alone was over 300 miles. It was time to return to Concord.

From St. Paul the pair took a steam boat to Prairie du Chien, then continued by train to Milwaukee. On June 30 they arrived in Mackinaw City, Michigan where they stayed until July 4. They botanized a little, but Thoreau's health was so bad he spent most of his time indoors sitting near the fire.

By steamship they went to Toronto, then continued south by railroad. The two weary travelers were back in Concord on July 10. The trip had taken its toll on Thoreau. A couple of weeks later he wrote a friend, "I have been sick so long that I have almost forgotten what it is to be well."

By the following winter Thoreau's health was declining fast and by January, 1862 he was completely bed-ridden. He died from tuberculosis in May 6, 1862. He never got the chance to put his extensive "Notes on the Journey West" into a workable, publishable format.

Photos: Courtesy of ArtToday.
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