Dr. John Milton Bigelow did not shy away from hard work, challenges, or adventure. At the age of 46, he signed on as surgeon and botanist for the Mexican Boundary Survey, following the U.S.-Mexican War that fulfilled the gold-hungry manifest destiny of the Americans.  This adventure took him through the Chihuahuan, Sonoran and Colorado deserts, where he catalogued the great variety of desert plants along with several other botanists on the expedition — including C.C. Parry, namesake of Parry’s Nolina. The work was so pleasing to Bigelow that he readily accepted similar appointments as field botanist in some of America's wildest lands. New soundscapes by RedBlueBlackSilver. Desert Oracle Radio (c)(p) 2017-2022 http://DesertOracle.com Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/desertoracle See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.