Lewis and Clark Revisited: A Trail in Modern Day Photographs by Greg Mac Gregor

In 1993 the National Park Service asked Greg Mac Gregor, Professor of Photography at California State University, Hayward, to create a series of photographs of the Western Trails. Included was a request for images capturing the route of Lewis and Clark, not as it appeared in their day, but rather, as it appears in modern times. In this exhibit, Mac Gregor pictures bridges, skylines, and Native Americans in running shoes. Not surprisingly, he also finds some rough country that remains along the track—the stubborn legacy of a once vast wilderness that challenged Lewis and Clark and their Corps of Discovery at every turn. While Lewis and Clark hoped to discover an easy route to Oregon, they also performed a scientific mission to gauge the commercial potential of the new land they viewed. Thomas Jefferson instructed them to document the land’s flora and fauna and to bring back samples. Running concurrently with “Lewis and Clark Revisited” is “Plants of the Lewis and Clark Expedition,” which displays species discovered by the captains in their journey up the Missouri River and over the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific. Actual Native American artifacts from cultures encountered along the route will also be on display.