1To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 6 May 1806 (Jefferson Papers)
I have had the honor of receiving your letter of the 28th. March accompanied by the printed account of discoveries on the Missouri &c which I have read with particular satisfaction. Mr Freeman with his party left this place the 28th April for the Red River, very commodiously fitted out with Lieut. Humphrey as geographical assistant, he is a young Officer of considerable talents: Lieut. Gaines...
2To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 18 March 1806 (Jefferson Papers)
I have the honor of receiving your letter of the 12th January by Mr. Freeman; I am extremely glad of his arrival, as no time ought now to be lost; the waters will begin to fall with the advancement of our Summer. Mr. Freeman is well qualified for the geographical part of the Expedition, but he did not seem fond of astronomical observation when I knew him on the line of demarkation, but I...
3To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 17 December 1805 (Jefferson Papers)
I have the pleasure of enclosing you an explanation with examples of the new method of finding the Longitude by a single observer, without any knowledge of the precise time: I have delayed longer than I intended forwarding this paper, in order to give me time to consider this new object in every point of view, so as to render the calculations as commodious as its nature will admit; at first...
4To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 10 November 1805 (Jefferson Papers)
An apology is due for the late appearance of my sketch of the Washita river, and I have not a good one to offer; I was not aware that upwards of twelve hundred Courses and distances would require so much time to reduce from time to measure in length & into latitude and departure; I had counted only upon a few days labor & therefore delayed too long to commence, and now it is not completed as I...
5To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 8 October 1805 (Jefferson Papers)
I have by this mail written to the Secretary at War, and given him the reasons of our tardy progress respecting the red river expedition. In your last you mentioned the name of Colo. Freeman as a proper assistant to the principal Conductor of the expedition: not knowing any person of that Name but the Officer commanding the troops at New Orleans, I concluded that he had expressed a desire to...
6To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 9 July 1805 (Jefferson Papers)
I have received the honor of your letter of the 25th. May, as also your note covering a letter for the Chevalr. Dannemour, which last has been forwarded. Having been of late engaged with my private concerns, my attention has been suspended from objects of a different nature, otherwise I should have, ere now, completed my sketch of the course of the Washita river, but I shall certainly get it...
7To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 2 March 1805 (Jefferson Papers)
Having dismissed my amanuensis on account of his extreme incorrectness & slowness, and being disappointed in another I expected I have for this week applied myself this week to transcribe with a multitude of interruptions which has consumed ¾ of my time next week I hope to progress more rapidly by means of expected aid—this Circumstance has withdrawn my attention from the revisal of my...
8To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 23 February 1805 (Jefferson Papers)
I have the pleasure of enclosing you two additional Setts of Sheets of the continuation of the geographical Survey of the river Washita. Upon further investigation I find I was a little precipitate in saying that the Long of the Hot Springs was about 6h. 13′ west of Greenwich; an mistake had been committed in correcting the error of the watch in the first hasty Calculation; I now find that by...
9Enclosure: Plants of the Ouachita River Region, February 1805 (Jefferson Papers)
List of Vegetables (perhaps non-descripts) from the River Washita Racine à Chevreuil (Deer’s root) This root is a globular farinaceous body from the size of a hen’s egg to that of a Mellon; it is without stem, leaf or any part above ground, & there are scarsely any perceptible fibres in the form of roots connected with the principal body. It is covered by a fibrous thin husk of a blackish...
10To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 15 February 1805 (Jefferson Papers)
The great irregularities and delays which the mail has experienced to and from this territory for some time past, has rendered it impossible that any report I might have prepared could possibly reach you before the end of the Sessions of Congress, which I presume must necessarily terminate by the 4th. day of March: I am much concerned at this delay, as the information we have collected...
11To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 2 February 1805 (Jefferson Papers)
I have the satisfaction to inform you, that Dor: Hunter and myself are just returned from the Washita : time does not permit the preparation of a short report of our researches before the departure of this mail. The Objects which have presented themselves to us, are not of very high importance; it must however be acknowledged that the hot springs are indeed a great natural curiosity; the...
12To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 9 November 1804 (Jefferson Papers)
After a voyage of trouble and retardment we are at last arrived at this place: Doctor Hunter’s boat constructed after his chinese model has proved to be an unprofitable Vessel, being extremely heavy & making bad headway against the Current; her rate of going is not one half of what it ought to be for an expedition of the nature on which we are engaged; we have made a great sacrifize of time in...
13To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 15 October 1804 (Jefferson Papers)
Colo. Freeman was unable to find a small boat and dispatched Lieut. Wilson with a serjeant and twelve in the large boat with four months provisions from the lst. of September: Extreme bad weather with rain and contrary winds rendered the passage up tedious, and to add to our retardment I was extremely unwell at the time of the boats arriving: a few days were necessary for recovery & a few more...
14To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 18 August 1804 (Jefferson Papers)
I have received the honor of your letter of the 17th. Ulto. which suffered a small delay by being enclosed to Mr. West & prevented my reply by last post. Fortunately the Expedition had not taken its departure, nor had I possitively engaged any one as Geographer to the party, so that no person can feel disappointment by the suspension, unless it should prove so to Dor. Hunter: In consequence of...
15To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 1 June 1804 (Jefferson Papers)
I am honored with your letter of the 15th. of April, accompanied by the instructions for the person who is to conduct the expedition up the Red river: I have already informed you in my last of the difficulty of finding a person here duly qualified, & should we in the end be obliged to accept of a person of moderate talents, it will probably in that case be proper to reserve the chief command...
16To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 13 May 1804 (Jefferson Papers)
I am honored with your favor of the 13th. March. I am extremely obliged by your condescension in communicating your remarks on some part of my imperfect sketch of the Missisippi: from what you have written I see the necessity of a short appendix, which I shall consider in the light of an apology for dissenting from the opinions of so many eminent mathematicians, who have written on the theory...
17To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 28 January 1804 (Jefferson Papers)
I have the pleasure of transmitting you a few imperfect notes relating to the Missisippi and the Alluvial Country thro which it passes. I am sensible they contain remarks of trivial importance, but believing almost every thing relating to this Country to be now very interesting to the United States, I have considerably enlarged my notes since the cession of Louisiana, & do now suffer them to...
18To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 21 October 1803 (Jefferson Papers)
I have been honored with your letter of the 21st. Ulto. and now make haste to reply to its contents. The information you have received relative to the re-annexation (by the Spanish Govt.) of that part of W. Florida lying between the Missisippi and river Perdido is perhaps incorrect: The stile and title of the Spanish Govr. (up to the present time) has been Governor General of the two provinces...
19To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 30 September 1803 (Jefferson Papers)
I had the pleasure of writing you the 19th. of last month, inclosing such imperfect information on the subject of your queries, as I at that time possessed; since which I have been favored with the perusal of the result of Mr. Clark’s researches , which are, as I expected, ample, leaving nothing more to be desired respecting most of the points of enquiry; He informs me also that he procured a...
20To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 19 August 1803 (Jefferson Papers)
I have the honor of receiving yours of the 17th & 18th. July . I rejoice exceedingly at the confirmation of the highly important intelligence of the Cession of Louisiana. This Event will form a grand Era in the annals of the U.S: After the attainment of Independence, all other incidents recorded in our history dwindle into nothing, in the presense of an object of such magnitude & so highly...
21To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 10 June 1803 (Jefferson Papers)
I am honored with yours of the 3d March. My unconfirmed state of health suffered some retardment from my attendance on the Legislature : its new position chosen by the late assembly, altho’ tollerable in our climate for a summer Session, was found to be, during a very cold winter, without comfort or even common accommodation: my sufferings demanded considerable repose; want of bodily health...
22To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 5 January 1803 (Jefferson Papers)
A series of bad health which has endured above twelve months has withdrawn much of my attention from Philosophic objects, a favorable change having lately taken place, I perceive with satisfaction that my Mind & body are both recovering their former tone, and now again enjoy the pleasing prospect of dedicating my leisure hours to my favorite amusements; which however must for a time be...
23To Thomas Jefferson from William Dunbar, 22 August 1801 (Jefferson Papers)
I have delayed untill the present moment acknowledging the honor of your letter of the 12th Jan. last, from a conviction of the impropriety of all trivial intrusion upon your time, always precious, but now dedicated to duties of the highest importance. However anxious I may be to express a due sense of your condescension, I shall ever guard myself against so impardonable an error. I shall...