The "Father of Waters"
- Title:
- The "Father of Waters"
- Alternate Title:
- The "Father of Waters"
- Collection:
- Persuasive Maps: PJ Mode Collection
- Creator:
- Glazier, Willard
- Other Creators:
- Mathews, Northrup & Co., printers
- Date:
- 1887
- Posted Date:
- 2024-04-25
- ID Number:
- 2504.03
- File Name:
- PJM_2504_03.jpg
- Style/Period:
- 1870 - 1899
- Subject:
- Advertising & Promotion
Deception/Distortion - Measurement:
- 95 x 9 (centimeters, height x width)
- Notes:
- This is one of a series of maps documenting the discovery of the headwaters of the Mississippi by Captain Willard Glazier on July 22, 1881. It is also a lesson on the effectiveness of maps in spreading disinformation.
It had long been thought that the headwaters were discovered by Henry Rowe Schoolcraft in 1832 at the north end of Lake Itasca in Minnesota and confirmed by Jean Nicollet in 1836. Glazier's small expedition found a tiny stream at the south end of Itasca, and after following it through a dense tangle, discovered a previously unknown lake that was the true headwaters. At the instance of others in his expedition, he named this newly discovered body of water at the source of the Mississippi, "Lake Glazier."
Immediately upon the discovery, the party drafted a petition "To Geographical Societies" regarding their findings and departed on a trip down the full length of the Mississippi. Along the way, Glazier gave lectures at many towns and met with newspapers and geographical societies about his discovery. At New Orleans, and the following year in St. Louis, he was honored by public officials and local scientific and historical societies. Glazier sent a letter about his discovery, with a large, detailed map he had produced of the headwaters, to the American Geographical Society and the Royal Geographical Society of England, and copies were forwarded to the New York Herald. Publication of the discovery in the Herald (June 1884) and the Royal Society's Proceedings (January 1885) gave the discovery a widespread and prestigious stamp of approval.
A colleague of Glazier meanwhile spent considerable time "industriously visiting publishers of geographical text-books and reference atlases," urging "the insertion of Lake Glazier on their maps" as the headwaters, and "in a number of cases" these changes had actually been made by 1886. Harrower 1886b, 9-14; Hinman 1886, 142 n.1. (For a copy of Glazier's large, rare map c.1882 and much other useful information, see Buehler, Michael, https://bostonraremaps.com/inventory/willard-glazier-source-of-the-mississippi-1880s/, accessed December 27, 2021.)
The first lengthy description of Glazier's discovery appeared in a book by John Algernon Owens entitled "Sword and Pen; or, Ventures and Adventures of Willard Glazier" (Philadelphia: P.W. Ziegler & Company, 1883). Much of this book relates to Glazier's early years and his heroic service in the Civil War, and it was apparently written before the expedition (since it was submitted for copyright in 1880). But the last eight chapters, nearly 100 pages, recount the discovery in elaborate and idolatrous terms and include a reduced version of Glazier’s map. It appears that Glazier wrote all or most of this book himself. "John Algernon Owens" seems to have left no trace whatsoever apart from this 500-page hagiography. It was noted at the time that Glazier's biographer "seems to know his inmost thoughts, and to be indeed his other self" while dwelling "with admiring phrases upon his wonderful achievements and his sure title to eternal fame." Harrower 1886b, 11. And a recent scholarly account attributes Sword and Pen to "Glazier, Willard [John Algernon Owens]." Smith 2019, Bibliography.
The first detailed account of the discovery in Glazier's name appeared in a series of articles published in 1884, "Recent Discovery of the True Source of the Mississippi River," American Meteorological Journal 1:178-79, 251-62, 322-28. Not surprisingly, it is a word-for-word repeat of the discovery section of "Sword and Pen," pp. 466-70, where "John Algernon Owens" purports to quote "passages from his [Glazier's] diary." The article in the AMJ concludes with a detailed table of "Meteorological Observations at the Head-waters of the Mississippi" on dates during the expedition.
In 1886, Captain Glazier's narrative encountered rough waters. In three separate publications that year by two geographers, totaling more than 60 pages of analysis, Glazier's "alleged discovery" was ridiculed as an "absurdity" and an "attempted fraud." Hinman 1886; Harrower 1886a; Harrower 1886b. They showed:
That Lake Glazier "is in reality Elk Lake," which had in fact been "mapped by Schoolcraft in 1832; fully explored and mapped by Nicollet in 1836; and surveyed, mapped and named by the land office" in 1875.
That the 1875 surveys of Elk Lake, since deposited in the General Land Office in Washington, were "made by Mr. Edwin S. Hall and assistants, who were in [this area] alone for over four weeks in September and October 1875, six years before Captain Glazier stopped over night (July 21-22, 1881) . . . and spent a few hours the next day in making his great explorations."
That Hall's survey was certified as correct in 1876 by J.H. Baker, the United States Surveyor-General of Minnesota.
That the accuracy of the 1875 Elk Lake map had also been verified by a surveyor for the Tenth U.S. Census who "went carefully over the ground in July 1880," and by "land and timber agents of the Northern Pacific Railroad, who have been over [all of this area] repeatedly since the official survey of 1875."
That "Lake Glazier" had also been observed and described by a correspondent from the New York Herald in 1872 and many others who visited the area from as early as 1846.
That "the position of Glazier Lake, as given by Mr. Glazier, is actually within Lake Itasca."
That Glazier had shamelessly plagiarized from Schoolcraft's Narrative published in 1834, repeatedly and at length "pillaging the work of Mr. Schoolcraft." And Glazier's detailed table of "Meteorological Observations" from 1881 had been copied "word for word and figure for figure" from Schoolcraft's data 50 years earlier.
That in conclusion, "a mere superficial charlatan has been able to lead astray and befog the press and the scientific bodies of almost the entire country, East and West."
Glazier was undeterred. In 1887, he published "Down the Great River. Embracing An Account of The Discovery of The Source Of The Mississippi," with some 75 pages recounting his discovery of Lake Glazier and more than 350 pages celebrating his triumphal voyage thereafter downriver to New Orleans. Although Glazier was certainly aware of the devastating articles attacking his claims (a colleague of Glazier had responded to one in print), there is not a single reference in the book to any of the many concerns that had been identified. There were, however, four more copies of the same Glazier map. His "Headwaters of the Mississippi - Map to Illustrate Voyage of Exploration to the Source of the Mississippi" (ID #2604.01) offers a view of the entire 1881 expedition route, with "Lake Glazier, Source of the Mississippi" in the lower left. There is a close-up map of Lake Itasca and the "Source of the Mississippi and its Feeders." ID #2604.02. There is also a long fold-out map of the entire length of the "Father of Waters" (ID #2604.03) with the same detailed map of Lake Glazier, "Source of the Mississippi" at the top left. And there is a copy of the "Source of the Mississippi and its Feeders" map – showing, but not naming Lake Itasca and Glazier Lake - embossed in black on the back cover of the book. (ID #2604.04).
Maps notwithstanding, Glazier's discovery faced new condemnation. Gen. James H. Baker, a respected soldier and United States Surveyor-General of Minnesota, published his own report. In it, Baker concluded that Glazier was (among other things) "stupid beyond belief," a "literary thief," "quack explorer," "charlatan adventurer," "pretentious," "devious," and "perverter of history and distorter of geography." He said (again, among other things) that Glazier's claim "abounds in atrocious falsehoods" with "false and erroneous maps" and was "so ludicrous [and] so supremely ridiculous, that, were it not for the seriousness of the situation, we would dismiss the matter as a joke." Baker 1887.
In 1889, the American Geographical Society remarked that although "The Lake Glazier Fiction" is "still accepted in some parts of the world" as authentic, "Capt. Willard Glazier has long been dead and buried, for all serious men." Bulletin of the American Geographical Society 21/1: 102-03 (1889). Jacob V. Brower was commissioned by the Minnesota Historical Society to survey the headwaters and spent more than five months in the field in 1888 and 1889. His report named additional explorers who had visited the area before Glazier. Brower described the swampy basin of seasonal streams and lakes surrounding Lake Itasca and reaffirmed that Elk [Glazier] Lake was "not the source of the Mississippi." As to Glazier's work, he found it "distorted," "fictitious," "founded on false statements," and generally a "fiasco." Brower 1893. And in 1891, the record was summed up by George C. Hurlbut, Librarian of the American Geographical Society: "In one word, Captain Glazier discovered nothing." Hurlbut 1891, 383.
Glazier responded with another book, published in 1893, "Headwaters of the Mississippi; Comprising Biographical Sketches of Early and Recent Explorers of the Great River, and a Full Account of the Discovery and Location of its True Source in a Lake Beyond Itasca." There are three maps in the text, each of which includes some version of the familiar image of "Lake Glazier, Source of the Mississippi River:" one covering the entire upper Mississippi from St. Paul north (ID #2605.02); a reduced version of Glazier's original 1881 map tracing the route of the expedition (ID #2605.03); and a detailed close up of "Lake Glazier and its Feeders" (ID #2605.04). But Glazier's cartographic pièce de résistance is the cover of this work: dark blue cloth with a large, bold image showing and naming Lake Glazier and Lake Itasca, embossed in silver, and the title, "Headwaters of the Mississippi" embossed in large gold letters. (ID #2605.01.)
Unlike his earlier work, Glazier here acknowledged the "unmeasured" and "vulgar abuse" aimed at him by the critics. He was, it turns out, the victim of "disingenuous" attacks and "misrepresentations" by "a few cavilers." pp. 9, 234-36. His response was to mount a second expedition, including a number of allegedly impartial observers. Much of the resulting work of more than 500 pages is a travelog, but it includes a lengthy effort by Glazier to discredit the roles of Schoolcraft, Nicollet and other explorers and surveyors who preceded him; detailed "endorsements" from the members of his expedition; and a 120-page Appendix written by one of his colleagues consisting mostly of supporting letters and newspaper articles from around the country.
Other research has revealed that there were substantial reasons to question Glazier's integrity long before his Mississippi adventures. Following the Civil War, he wrote two books about his capture and repeated bold escapes from the Confederates and gave lecture tours in the Midwest, "selecting attractive young ladies to accompany him to serve as canvassers for his books, his motives predatorial." In 1879, he was arrested at the behest of an outraged mother, accused of having impregnated and abandoned her fifteen-year old daughter." He gave lectures coast to coast to raise funds for various charities, "[b]ut it seems that the alleged beneficiaries knew nothing of the arrangement." After Glazier reported that he had been captured by Indians and escaped, outrunning his captors, "the Cleveland Leader announced his escape under the heading 'Pained to announce' and proposed a subscription to buy the Indians faster horses!" His notoriety was so widespread that when he announced his Mississippi expedition in 1881, the [St. Paul] Daily Globe entreated the residents of the region, “We have only to say to the untutored savages of the West . . . that you have now an opportunity to redeem yourselves. Prepare your shot-guns, and wait the coming of a careworn literary man in a canoe . . . Men of the Mississippi, do your duty.” Buehler, supra. And as to the captain's heroic war efforts, "The name Willard Glazier is not to be found in the U. S. Army Register, nor in the List of Officers and Volunteers, 1861-1865, in the records of the War Department, nor in the U. S. Navy Register." Hurlbut 1891, 378 n.
In the end, Glazier's claim failed, and Glazier Lake disappeared. The source of the Mississippi today is agreed to be at the north end of Lake Itasca, rather than Elk Lake to the south. But he nevertheless seems to have had no small success. His two books were reprinted a number of times through 1899, and both have been reprinted again in this century. The New York Times reported his death in 1905 under the headline "Mississippi Explorer Dies. Col. [sic] Willard Glazier Was Veteran of Many Adventures." The article set out his dramatic escapes from the Confederate prisons and later from the hostile Indians, adding that "He claimed discovery of the real source of the Mississippi, a small Lake south of Lake Itasca." New York Times, April 27, 1905, p. 11.
Cornell University Library is pleased to present this digital collection of Persuasive Maps, the originals of which have been collected and described by the private collector PJ Mode. The descriptive information in the “Collector’s Notes” has been supplied by Mr. Mode and does not necessarily reflect the views of Cornell University. - Source:
- Glazier, Willard. 1887, reprinted 1889. Down The Great River. Embracing An Account Of The Discovery Of The Source Of The Mississippi.Philadelphia: Hubbard Brothers.
- Format:
- Image
- Rights:
- For important information about copyright and use, see http://persuasivemaps.library.cornell.edu/copyright.