Mastodons and 'Murica, with Lauren Vogelbaum, Part Two: A Grudge Match with the French
Summary
This episode continues the saga of Thomas Jefferson’s feud with Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon, over American wildlife. Jefferson sends a decaying moose carcass to Paris to prove moose exist, sparking a debate on extinction. The hosts also discuss the first assembled mastodon skeleton, Georges Cuvier’s naming of the species, and Cotton Mather’s smallpox inoculation efforts using knowledge from an enslaved man.
Topics discussed
Intro, ads, and the start of the Buffon-Jefferson moose feud
The moose debate: Jefferson vs. Buffon and the taxidermy disaster
Jefferson's victory, ads, and the introduction of Charles Willson Peale
Peale's mastodon excavation and the philosophical debate on American nature
Georges Cuvier, the naming of the mastodon, and extinction theories
Cotton Mather, Anisimus, and the history of smallpox inoculation
The fate of the Peale Mastodon and Jefferson's fossil obsession
Outro, listener questions, and final sponsor messages
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