Bernard Romans - Publishing A Concise Natural History of East and West Florida

Publishing A Concise Natural History of East and West Florida

In early 1773, Romans left West Florida to travel to the northern colonies. He wanted to publish his nautical charts and navigational instructions, along with material on the natural history of the Floridas that he had gathered in his surveys. He also took rare seeds and plant specimens he had collected. His ship was "over-set at sea", and the seeds and plant specimens were lost or ruined. His navigational charts and the manuscript of the book he was writing on the natural history of the Floridas were saved.

Romans was now planning an ambitious book of some 300 pages with copper plate engravings and two large maps of the Floridas and the Caribbean. He needed to find financial backers and sign up subscribers to meet the costs of publishing the book. This effort led him into many new contacts. In August 1773, Romans was admitted into the Marine Society of the City of New York. In January 1774, he was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society. A paper by Romans on an improved sea compass was published in the society's Transactions, and he presented descriptions of new plants he found in Florida to the society. Although no longer resident in West Florida, Romans had also been appointed botanist for West Florida.

During this time, Romans proposed to William Legge, 2nd Earl of Dartmouth, Secretary of State for the Colonies and President of the Board of Trade and Foreign Plantations, an expedition to the northeastern parts of Asia. Romans gave more details of his scheme to Dr. Hugh Williamson, a fellow member of the American Philosophical Society. To Dr. Williamson, Romans expounded his plan for an expedition to explore the Mississippi River basin and the Great Lakes, then moving westward to the Pacific coast. From there, the expedition would cross the Pacific Ocean to Asia, and travel through Russia, eventually reaching Great Britain. This was thirty years before President Thomas Jefferson commissioned the Lewis and Clark Expedition, and almost twenty years before Alexander MacKenzie's crossing of the Canadian Arctic.

Romans continued to work to get his book published. Romans had originally conceived his book as a guide to mariners, and one-quarter of his subscribers were involved in shipping. But Romans also was receiving questions from people who were interested in moving to the Floridas, and Romans expanded his book to accommodate them. From the originally planned 300 pages, the book grew to about 800 pages, and had to be split into two volumes. Romans promised his subscribers that the second volume would be forwarded to them at no additional charge (the first volume had to be printed and sent off before the presses could be set up for the second volume). Romans placed ads in many newspapers, and traveled extensively seeking subscribers to the book. Romans had selected James Rivington, publisher of Rivington's New-York Gazetteer, to be his printer, and engaged Paul Revere to engrave most of the plates for the book. Romans also collaborated with Paul Revere on other projects, including the map that accompanied Rivington's printing of John Hawkesworth's book on the voyages of James Cook.

The first volume of A Concise Natural History of East and West Florida was finally ready for delivery in late April 1775. Romans announced in Rivington's New-York Gazetteer that his subscribers should tell him where to deliver the books. Romans's announcement was published eight days after the Battles of Lexington and Concord. A second printing of the volume was required in 1776 to fulfill all subscriptions.

The standard author abbreviation Romans is used to indicate this individual as the author when citing a botanical name.