My internship at the Map Library has lead me to do some research to find “old” and “interesting” items relating to France for an up and coming exhibit. I have seen A LOT of maps of France, and while they are all very interesting and old, it’s easy to be phased by them. This past week, my internship advisor, Karl handed me a list of books to research in the Special Collections Library on the 7th floor of the Hatcher Graduate Library. He found these books in a list of references in a book about the history of traveling in France. I looked at the list and decided to request a book called, “A Narrative of the two aerial voyages of Doctor Jeffries observations and remarks” because it seemed the most interesting.
While waiting for the book to be retrieved from the hidden stacks, I decided to do some research about the author of the book. Dr. John Jeffries, as it turns out, was one of the main witnesses of the Boston Massacre and testified for the defense, and actually served as the chief surgeon dealing with the injuries from the incident. American born, Jeffries would always remain loyal to Britain. He was also a military surgeon for the British Army in the American Revolution. He is also famous for being one of the first meteorologist (or weather observer as they called it back then). But that is not what he’s most famous for, however. He is famous for being the first to cross successfully cross the English Channel into France, and he did it in an air balloon! The book I was waiting for, in fact, was his personal account of the journey. There is no denying that Europe is well traveled, and by the time he flew his balloon over France, in 1785, he was most definitely not the first person to see the country. He was, however, the first to see the country from above, which was a whole new realm of travel.
Dr. John Jeffries, wishing to establish himself as a reputable man of science, created a personal account of his flight to be read before the Royal Society of London, and the book we have in the special collections is a signed copy that was given to the society. The book describes his voyage and as he neared the end of the English Channel, he described a little scare, when the ominous French cliffs came into view. The balloon was not flying high enough and they were worried that they would clear the cliffs, and their solution is admirable:
"We were obliged, though very unwillingly, to throw away our anchors and cords; but still approaching the sea, we began to strip ourselves, and cast away our cloathing, M. Blanchard first throwing away his extra coat, with his surtout; after which I cast away my only coat. ...and then M. Blanchard [tossed away] his other coat and trowsers: We then put on and adjusted our cork-jackets [i.e., life jackets], and prepared for the event."
After losing most of their clothes, the impact seemed inevitable, until the weather suddenly changed allowing them to clear the cliff. What a lucky man!
sources:
http://www.npg.si.edu/exh/franklin/jeffries.htm
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/news/display_cmsstory.php?wfo=lot&storyid=21403&source=0
http://boston1775.blogspot.com/2006/07/dr-john-jeffries-physician-loyalist.html
http://boston1775.blogspot.com/2006/08/dr-john-jeffries-physician-loyalist_04.html
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