Travel & Adventure

Light hearted wisdom
An  Online Anthology North American Travel Literature
(Assembled by Media History students) 

“Afoot and light-hearted I take to the open road … Here is the test of wisdom…  that provokes it out of the soul.” Walt Whitman, Song of the Open Road    

1. Collections  and other anthologies 

  • American Journeys —   Hundreds of full text travelogs in the public domain 
  • Journeys: An American Story – Stories of 20th and 21st century immigrants

2. Inspirations    

3.  The Old world meets the New

  • Christopher Columbus, 1500, Letter to Prince John
  •  Thomas Hariot, 1590, A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land Of Virginia,
  • Capt. John Smith, 1624 – The General Historie of Virginia …
  • Peter Kalm, 1772, “Travels Into North America,”
  • Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, Expedition,  1804 – 1806  Journals

4. Understanding  America and Americans 

  • Frances Trollope – 1832 –  Domestic Manners of the Americans
  • Alexis  De Tocqueville  – 1835 – Democracy in America
  • John Benwell – c 1830 – An Englishman’s Travels in America
  • Harriet Martineau – 1837 – Society in America
  • Frederick Marryat – 1838 – Diary in America
  • Charles Dickens  – 1842 – American Notes 
  • Rudyard Kipling – 1891 – American Notes     
  • A. Safroni-Middleton – 1916 – Vagabond’s Odyssey
  • Phillip Gibbs – 1920 – People of Destiny: Americans as I saw them at home and abroad.
  • G.K. Chesterton – 1922 – What I saw in America
  • C.K. Sheppard – 1922 – Across America by Motorcycle 
    Charles Dickens review
    Review by Andrew Josephs– In American Notes, Charles Dickens writes about his months-long trip through the United  States and parts of Canada in 1842. What makes this book interesting is how he mixes simple  day-to-day observations with bigger thoughts about the country and the people he met. He travels everywhere — by ship, steamboat, train, and stagecoach — so you get this real on-the-ground sense of what America looked and felt like at the time. Dickens doesn’t shy away from what surprises him or what bothers him. He’s honest  about the rough parts, like the overcrowded travel conditions, the noise and pace of American cities, and especially the country’s racial inequalities. But he also points out the enthusiasm, energy, and pride he sees in nearly every new place he visits. The book reads like someone trying to understand a young, fast-changing nation while figuring out what makes Americans “American.” Overall, it feels less like a formal history document and more like someone keeping a
    thoughtful travel journal — noticing things, reacting to them, and piecing together a clearer picture of a country that was still figuring itself out.
    C.K. Sheppard Review
    Review by Andrew Josephs– C.K. Shepherd was a young British RAF veteran who came to the U.S. right after World  War I. Restless after the war and not interested in “settling down,” he bought a powerful four-cylinder motorcycle in New York in 1919 and decided to ride it solo from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The trip was about 5,000 miles and became this 1922 travelogue, Across America by Motor-Cycle.What I like about Shepherd’s book is that it’s basically one long mix of post-war restlessness, road rage, and humor. He starts in New York, admitting he briefly considered “becoming American” by copying the clothes, slang, and attitude, but gives up pretty quickly and just stays himself. Once he leaves the city, the real story becomes the roads. The parts you can tell he remembers the most are not the pretty scenery, but the awful “natural gravel”  highways, endless detours, and the constant fight just to stay upright on the bike. He describes paddling his feet through deep sand, dropping the machine into ditches, and taking photos of the worst spots because he knows nobody back home will believe how bad it is. That whole stretch from Philadelphia toward Washington feels like a battle between him, the motorcycle, and the road.At the same time, he notices how people and towns treat travelers. There’s a funny contrast between the brutal roads and the super-friendly messages hung across the streets like, “CONWAY CITY WELCOMES YOU… HAVE A GOOD LOOK AT OUR CITY,” followed by  a goodbye banner on the way out. He talks about never feeling like a “stranger in a foreign land” because every little place wants visitors to feel welcome. In between, he stops at garages, meets mechanics who can’t really fix anything, and has these small, random conversations that show a lot about everyday American life right after the war. You can tell he’s annoyed half the time, but he also clearly enjoys how different and open things feel compared to England.My favorite part in this section is the whole speeding incident in Maryland. Shepherd lets his bike stretch out on a long, empty road, races a Buick, and then suddenly finds out the “friendly” driver is actually a speed cop. He gets marched into a tiny office where a judge reads a long chunk of state traffic law from a big red book and fines him $25.75—which, unfortunately, is basically all the money he has. Shepherd tries to argue, jokes with the judge, and even briefly considers going to jail instead, just to see what it’s like. In the end, he pays, walks out almost broke, and rides off laughing anyway. That moment kind of sums up the whole travelogue: things go wrong constantly, people aren’t always fair, but he keeps moving, makes a joke out of it, and treats the whole cross-country ride as an adventure he’s going to remember for the rest of his life.

5. The South    

  • John Lawson – 1700 – A new Voyage to Carolina
  • William Bartram  – 1791  Travels through North and South Carolina
  • Anne Royall – 1822 – Letters from Alabama; also Sketches of History, Life and Manners in the United States; also Mrs. Royal’s Southern Tour; and The Black Book, a Continuation of Travels in the United States.   
  • William Cullen Bryant – 1850 Letters of a Traveller  Notes of Things Seen in Europe and America 
  • Frederick Law Olmsted (Yoeman in the NY Times) – 1853
  • William Howard Russell 1861  The Civil War in America
  • Harriet Beecher Stowe  1873  Palmetto-Leaves   
  • Ida B Wells — 1895 – Southern Horrors
  • Ray Stannard Baker – 1908 Following the Color Line   
  • John and Olive Dame Campbell – 1921 – The Southern Highlander and his Homeland
  •  John Howard Griffin – 1961 – Black Like Me
  •  Harry M. Caudill –  1962 – Night Comes to the Cumberlands 
    Campbell Review
    Review by Brandon Whitaker — The preface of this book details how this research has been published after Campbells passing and that the rest of the pages are the “outcome of twenty-five years of life and experience in the mountain country of the South.” There are two sentences in the preface where the author refers to a problem in the region or in one case the “mountain problem” and this is something that Campbell is researching in the region. He started this research study because he was on a vacation after his health declined during his career in education. I believe that his goal was to study the people of the Highlands and their environment. After all his research the book also mentions that he didn’t consent to publishing until a year before his death and that despite his worsening health, he was still able to fully outline the book. He did end up passing away before it was fully completed. In the foreword he aims to address whoever may be reading this book. “You may be a high administrative official in a far-away northern or southern metropolis, endeavoring to the best of your ability to shape and direct the mission work under your charge for the Southern Highlander; or you may be the Southern Highlander himself, who like the rest of us does not at all relish the idea of being uplifted or missionary-ized. Possibly you are a mission worker from North or South who feels that your urban-minded bishop or superintendent does not comprehend your problems or fully sympathize with them, because he keeps to the Pullman routes of travel and frequents all too little the bridle path which leads to your dwelling. Perhaps you are just an eager American, interested in a wonderfully picturesque section of your own country, wanting to be told facts about it by someone who is supposed to know; or a member of some church, wondering if the work which is being done and to which you contribute is well conceived and well administered.” It sounds like the problem Campbell is referring to may be a problem with the perception of “the Highlander” or just the American south in general. At the end of the foreword he speaks of the Highlands as a land of promise and a land of romance and insists that the region is one of a kind.

6. The Rivers

  • Harriet Martineau 1838 — Mississippi Voyage
  • Henry David Thoreau – 1857  – Canoeing in the Wilderness
  • N. H. Bishop, 1878, Voyage of the Paper Canoe
  • Mark Twain – 1883 – Life on the Mississippi.
  • George Byron Merrick, 1909. Old Times on the Upper Mississippi
  • Mark Neuzil – 2012 – Natural History of the Canoe
    G.B. Merrick Review
    By Dustin Matney — Old Times on the Upper Mississippi by George Byron Merrick   recounts the author’s experiences along the upper Mississippi River from the years 1854 to 1863. It tells tales of multiple towns, crews, steamboats, and how the river was at the forefront of commerce and exploration during that era. This story also follows the river throughout the years as the environment surrounding it changed. Other forms of transportation started taking over such as steamboats, getting replaced by railways. This memoir tells the tale of a bygone time and makes it feel as if you are there.

7. The American West    

8.  Wild Trails 

  • Henry David Thoreau –Walking, 1862, Walden ,  A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, Cape Cod, and others. 
  • Francis Parkman – 1849 – The Oregon Trail
  • J. Smeaton Chase – 1911 – Yosemite Trails  
  • John Muir — 1918 – Steep Trails
  • Mary Roberts Rinehart –  1916 Through Glacier Park, 1918 – Tenting tonight
  • Bill Bryson – 1998  – A walk in the woods (Appalachian Trail)
  • Cheryl Strayed – 2012 – Wild: From Lost to found on the Pacific Crest Trail.

H.D. Thoreau review
Review by Xavier Brown –Henry David Thoreau’s “Walking” is less about reaching a destination and more about rediscovering a connection to the world around us. In this essay, Thoreau turns a simple walk into something deeply meaningful, a way to escape routine, breathe in the wild, and find clarity away from the noise of everyday life. He reminds readers that walking isn’t just exercise; it’s a mindset, a return to freedom, and a reminder that nature has lessons we can’t find anywhere else.
His words feel timeless, encouraging us to slow down, look around, and remember that adventure can be as close as the nearest trail.Originally published in 1862, “Walking” still feels fresh and relevant today., where it continues to inspire readers who crave a slower, more intentional way of experiencing the world. The essay
fits perfectly with the Revolutions in Communication Travel & Adventure collection because it celebrates exploration not just as a physical journey but as a spiritual one. Thoreau shows us that
you don’t need to travel far to find adventure sometimes, all it takes is a walk outside and the courage to notice the world in front of you.
John C. Fremont Review
Review by Andrew Josephs — Frémont was sent by the U.S. government to survey the land between Missouri and the Rocky Mountains. His reports were published in the 1840s and ended up shaping how the country imagined the West. Kit Carson and Charles Preuss were part of his team, which is why this expedition became so well-known. Frémont’s report really shows what it felt like to leave settled areas and step straight into the open prairie. He explains the land almost mile by mile—limestone hills, long stretches with no water, and these sudden pockets of plants where the soil was better. What stood out to me is how the expedition had to constantly adjust to the landscape. One day they’d hit a big river crossing, and the next they’d be fighting heat, wind, or storms. Even though it’s an official government report, he still brings out small details like antelope running over the hills or Carson bringing in fresh deer for the camp.As they kept moving west, they ran into different groups of people—Oregon Trail families, small groups of fur traders, and even Cheyenne men coming back from a horse-stealing  attempt. Some of the “dangerous” moments ended up being nothing, like when the men thought they saw a whole war party and it turned out to be six elk. It shows how easily tension and rumors could spread when you’re out in the middle of nowhere. At the same time, you can tell the area wasn’t empty land. A lot of different people were using the same routes, each with their own reasons.The buffalo section is the most memorable part of this stretch. Frémont describes these huge herds that covered the plains to the point where it felt like the ground was moving. Everyone in the group got excited because it meant good food and a break from constant worry. Even during these big moments, he still kept track of measurements, plants, soil, and weather. That mix of excitement and documentation shows why his writing mattered—he wasn’t just telling a story, he was recording information that shaped how Americans understood the West. It reads like a real travel experience, not just a scientific report.
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9. The Far North

  • Richard Hakluyt.  1615 – Voyages in Search of the Northwest Passage
  • Samuel Hearne 1769 – A Journey  from the Prince of Wales Fort in Hudson’s Bay to the Northern Ocean  
  • Alexander MacKenzie 1801. — Voyages from Montreal.
  • John Franklin.  1828  Journey to the Polar Sea 
  • Fridtjof Nansen, 1898 – Farest North   
  • May Kellogg Sullivan 1902. A Woman who went to Alaska
  • Robert E. Peary, 1910 – The North Pole
  • Ernest Thompson Seton, 1911 – The  Arctic Prairies    
  • Jack London, 1903 Call of the Wild
    Review of Jack London
    By Katherine Clarke — Although fiction, this book came to represent the far north for many in the English-speaking world. It’s about a pampered dog that is taken from his comfortable home and sold as a sled dog in the Yukon during the Gold Rush. He is taken from his known reality of civilization and is forced to learn how to survive in a brutal environment. “Here was imperative need to be constantly alert; for these dogs and men were not town dogs and men. They were savages, all of them, who knew no law but the law of club and fang.”  Buck rises through the ranks as a sled dog and defeats his rival (Spitz). When John Thornton, a gold miner, saves Buck from being beaten by his owner, the two form a great bond. When John Thornton is killed by the Yeehat tribe, Buck answers the “call of the wild” and joins a wolf pack for the rest of his days.

10.  South of the Border 

  • John L. Stephens 1848 Incidents of Travel in Yucatan
  • Maturin M. Ballou.  1854 History of Cuba; or, Notes of a Traveller in the Tropics
  • Nelly Bly 1888 Six months in Mexico.   Also Ten Days in a Madhouse 
  • John Reed 1914 Insurgent Mexico.
  • Marian M. George.  1916 A Little Journey to Puerto Rico 
    Nelly Bly review
    By Katherine Clarke — This travelogue is a detailed account of Nelly Bly and her mothers’ experiences and encounters in Mexico 1888. Nelly Bly had recently become a newspaperwoman and was growing impatient of the mundane duties of her job, so she made the plan to travel to Mexico as a foreign correspondent. She is known to immerse herself in different world cultures for the sake of journalism, and this trip was no exception. Nelly witnessed Mexican customs including social rituals and traditions and was especially interested by the local popularity of tobacco and marijuana. She also pointed out the extreme division between wealth and poverty. Some of the towns that she passed through were lively and progressive- she likened them to more modern American-style towns- while she claimed others were more akin to “the Middle Ages” in modernity. She witnessed a bullfight which she claimed to be the “most inhumane thing” she had seen in all of Mexico.There is also a strong central theme of press freedom in her writings. Mexican journalists risked imprisonment and even death if they criticized the government, and this eventually led to her having to flee Mexico to avoid danger. Along with the local political regime of that time (Porfirio Diaz) and severe social inequality, Nelly Bly documented injustices and social issues while also shining a light on the cultural tradition and heritage of the regions she visited
     

11. On the Road 

11.  Journeys into the past.

12. Immigration

  • Don Watson – 2018 – American Journeys
  • Katy Long – 2017 – American Journeys

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Metropolitan museum exhibit of travel journals