The Center of Southwest Studies at Fort Lewis College concludes its summer lecture series based on the theme, “A Year in the Life of the West” with a presentation from Syl Allred, “First Glimpse of a Rugged Land”: Tales of an 1851 Expedition, on Wednesday, August 24th at 1:30 p.m. in the Center’s Lyceum Room 120.
In the late 1840s and early 1850s, the United States was expanding its appetite westward. Exploring its newly acquired lands was a necessity. The Sitgreaves Expedition was charged with finding a direct route to California across what was then called the New Mexico Territory. This military and scientific expedition traversed a truly dry, jagged, volcanic, and unforgiving landscape. Along the 870 mile journey, lasting 86 days, there were many significant biological, geological, and archaeological discoveries made. Present day Interstate 40 (Route 66) follows in this expedition’s dusty tracks.
Sylvester Allred, Ph.D. is an Emeritus Principal Lecturer at Northern Arizona University. He spent 27 years conducting ecological and reproductive research on tassel-eared squirrels in the Ponderosa pine forests of the southwestern United States. Tassel-eared squirrels were first identified in 1851 in the San Francisco Peaks of northern Arizona by a member of the Sitgreaves expedition.
This lecture is free to the public. Parking on campus is free during summer months.
The Center of Southwest Studies, now in its fifty-second year, provides an active program of free public lectures and events year-round at its museum, research library, and archives facility on the campus of Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. For more information, please contact the Center’s business office at 970-247-7456 or visit http://swcenter.fortlewis.edu
