[4] In 1756, at the age of 17, he collected the type specimens of 14 species of American birds,[5] which were illustrated and described by the English naturalist George Edwards in Gleanings of Natural History vol.

[9] The son of Ann (née Mendenhall) and the naturalist John Bartram, William and his twin sister Elizabeth were born in Kingsessing, Philadelphia, in the Province of Pennsylvania.

He learned that a Native American congress was to take place in Augusta, Georgia in June and was invited by Superintendent of Indian affairs, John Stuart, to join the party that would survey a new land cession.

As he traveled through the sparsely populated country of South Georgia, he encountered an "intrepid Siminole" who had resolved upon killing the next white man he met but was disarmed by Bartram's unexpected friendliness.

When the surveyor said it was right because the compass told him so the chief, Young Warrior, said that, ... the little wicked instrument was a liar; and he would not acquiesce in its decisions, since it would wrong the Indians out of their land.

[11]Bartram returned to Savannah in mid-July and spent the fall and winter on the coast of Georgia, exploring the Altamaha River, writing his report, and preparing his seeds for shipment to England.

Bartram was entertained by Stephen Egan, Egmont's agent, who rode with him around the entire island observing the plantation and Indian mounds.

Just south of Palatka, at Stokes Landing, James Spalding built his Lower Store where Bartram made his headquarters while in Florida.

He wrote: I observed one of them was a young prince who had, on my first interview with him, declared himself my friend and protector, when he told me that if ever occasion should offer in his presence, he would risk his life to defend mine or my property.

This young champion stood by his two associates, one on each side of him, the two affecting a countenance and air of displeasure and importance, instantly presenting their scratching instruments, and flourishing them, spoke boldly, and said that I was too heroic and violent, that it would be good for me to loose some of my blood to make me more mild and tame, and for that purpose they were come to scratch me; they gave me no time to expostulate or reply, but attempted to lay hold on me, which I resisted, and my friend, the young prince, interposed and pushed them off, saying that I was a brave warrior and his friend, that they should not insult me, when instantly they altered their countenance and behaviour; they all whooped in chorus, took me friendly by the hand, clapped me on the shoulder and laid their hands on their breasts in token of sincere friendship, and laughing aloud, said I was a sincere friend to the Siminoles,...[12]Bartram joined Spalding's traders in mid-April on a trip to Cuscowilla (Micanopy) and Alachua Savannah, now Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park.

[17] In addition to his botanizing, Bartram aptly described the journey: ...all alone in a wild Indian country, a thousand miles from my native land, and a vast distance from any settlements of white people.

Darkness gathers around, far distant thunder rolls over the trembling hills; the black clouds with august majesty and power, moves slowly forwards, shading regions of towering hills, and threatening all the destructions of a thunderstorm; all around is now still as death, not a whisper is heard, but a total inactivity and silence seems to pervade the earth; the birds afraid to utter a chirrup, and in low tremulous voices take leave of each other, seeking covert and safety; every insect is silenced, and nothing heard but the roaring of the approaching hurricane; the mighty cloud now expands its sable wings, extending from North to South, and is driven irresistibly on by the tumultuous winds, spreading his livid wings around the gloomy concave, armed with terrors of thunder and fiery shafts of lightning; now the lofty forests bend low beneath its fury, their limbs and wavy boughs are tossed about and catch hold of each other; the mountains tremble and seem to reel about, and the ancient hills to be shaken to their foundations: the furious storm sweeps along, smoaking through the vale and over the resounding hills; the face of the earth is obscured by the deluge descending from the firmament, and I am deafened by the din of thunder; the tempestuous scene damps my spirits, and my horse sinks under me at the tremendous peals, as I hasten for the plain.

In the late 1780s, he completed the book for which he became most famous, Travels through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East and West Florida, the Cherokee Country, etc.

[citation needed] Although Bartram has often been characterized as a recluse, all evidence shows that he remained active in commercial, scientific, and intellectual pursuits well into the nineteenth century.

He tutored nieces and nephews, penned a number of essays, contributed to several works anonymously, and helped run the family horticultural business.

In 1802, Bartram met the school teacher Alexander Wilson and began to teach him the rudiments of ornithology and natural history illustration.

Among Bartram's more significant later contributions were the illustrations for his friend Benjamin Smith Barton's explanation of the Linnaean system, Elements of Botany (1803–04).

After the War of 1812, when many of his colleagues, contacts, and friends had died, Bartram settled into a long period of work, observation, and study at the family's garden in Kingsessing.

He refused a request to teach botany at the University of Pennsylvania, and in his sixties, declined an invitation from President Thomas Jefferson to accompany an expedition up the Red River in the Louisiana Territory, in 1806.

"[21] Details of the event were described in a letter by Thomas L. McKenney to Dolley Madison, dated July 28, 1835:"My Dear Madam, / You once did me the favor to send me some lines on the traveller & Botanist Bartram.