Audubon and His Journals, Volume 1 — Background and Themes

A London Journal, Not a Field Notebook

The catalog subjects list Audubon as a naturalist and his work as about birds, but the excerpts from this journal show a man navigating urban society rather than observing wildlife. On February 1, 1828, he writes of buying a new journal in London and addressing it to his wife and sons. He describes visits to the Exeter Exchange menagerie and the Zoological Society Gardens, where he finds the collection inferior to what he has seen in American swamps. The entries focus on social calls, theatre performances, and the loss of subscribers to his bird publication. This is not a field guide but a record of the business and social life behind his ornithological work.

The Editor's and Annotator's Roles

Maria R. Audubon's preface explains that Elliott Coues provided all zoological notes and many geographical ones, and that the arrangement of papers was suggested by Dr. G. Brown Goode. She thanks multiple contributors, including family members who lent letters and journals. The text thus carries multiple layers: Audubon's original words, his granddaughter's editorial framing, and Coues's scientific annotations. Readers should be aware that the journal entries are embedded within this editorial apparatus, which shapes how Audubon's voice is presented. The preface itself is a document of late-19th-century scholarly practice.

Audubon's Voice and Self-Presentation

In the excerpts, Audubon's writing is direct and personal. He calls himself a 'woodsman' and contrasts his practical knowledge with that of 'great men' like Captain Sabine, who asks about eagle identification. He describes his mood as 'dull as a beetle' in London's smoke. The journal is addressed to his wife, and he mentions longing to press his sons to his heart. These details reveal a self-aware narrator who is both proud of his expertise and weary of city life. The entries show him negotiating his identity as an American naturalist in European scientific circles, a theme that runs through the volume.

Readers approaching this volume should expect a hybrid work: part personal diary, part historical document, part scientific commentary. The journal entries are not continuous but selected and arranged by the editor. Coues's notes add context but also interrupt Audubon's narrative. Pay attention to the dates and locations, which shift between America and Europe. The book offers insight into the man behind the bird plates, but always filtered through the perspectives of his granddaughter and a professional zoologist.

Reading Audubon’s London days, I remembered my own quiet evenings cataloguing old field notes, the same patient loneliness. Life histories of North American shore birds, Part 1 (of 2) — Key Ideas to Explore once gave me that same feeling—not of the birds themselves, but of the long, unhurried companionship with a single obsession.