The Missouri

Rivers of America #26

by Stanley Vestal, Jonathan Waterman (Foreword), Getlar Smith (Illustrator)

The Missouri was the river of Lewis and Clark, of Manuel Lisa, General Ashley, and other organizers of the fur trade; of such noted travelers as George Catlin, Henry R. Schoolcraft, and Prince Maximilian; of a host of adventurous steamboat captains; of explorers like Jedediah Smith, Kit Carson, and Frémont; of doughty hunters and trappers like Hugh Glass, Jim Bridger, and John Colter . Stanley Vestal's rollicking story of one of America's most fabled waterways presents western history on a grand scale, one that. according to the New York Times, "anyone remotely interested in the American West will read ."

"Vestal takes the Big Muddy as the central character in an intriguing story. . . . It is always readable, always informative."—Los Angeles Times

Genres: History, American History

392 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1945

About the author

Walter Stanley Vestal

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanley...

Reviews

[Shawn]

This is a great book epic in scope. Well written but loaded with cultural anachronisms (it was first published in 1945) the author follows the Missouri River from St. Louis to the Three Forks exploring historical events occurring on or near its shores. Since the text follows the geography of the river the events are not presented chronologically, thus Lewis and Clark's journey appears in three or four different and separate areas of the book. This makes the book a bit choppy but nevertheless, educational and enjoyable.

[Chris Miller]

Using a style that meanders as much as the subject but generally following a north from St. Louis perspective, this is a knitting together of geography, culture, confluence, history and travel. With a 1945 copywrite, it is a nice window into this type of book from 70 years ago as well. Really enjoyable.

[Curtis Anthony Bozif]

Folklore of the the old Missouri River. Having grown up with Native American friends as a boy and working closely with them his whole life, Vestal depict Native Americans with a dignity and respect. His voice as a writer is very enjoyable. Like an old timey newspaper. Read this not long after I read Lewis and Clark's journals and The Earth Is Weeping by Peter Cozzens. I'd highly recommend those books as accompanying texts.