On July 29, 1883, Horace Dade Ashton entered the world in an open sailboat in the middle of the Potomac River. His father delivered him 133 years ago today, after his mother’s labor pains grew intense, the wind died down, and the river was twelve miles wide. After making such a dramatic entry, Horace might have chosen a calm, sedate life. But that wasn’t the case!
Orphaned in his teens, he set out to make a living. He also made his mark, becoming the first adventure photographer and contributing to the world in many ways. He found the source of the Orinoco River in South America, discovered the endpoint of the Endless Caverns in Virginia, located the white cattleya orchid in Colombia’s jungle, air mapped the Strait of Magellan, and saved starving Eskimos in the Arctic Circle.
Along the way he met personalities from all parts of the globe including the legendary Rasputin of Russia, American Chiefs of State, Sovereigns of Europe, inventors Alexander Graham Bell and the Wright brothers, Pope Pius XI, and Benito Mussolini, who coincidentally was born on the same day as Horace, but whose character differed a great deal.
Horace Ashton’s nearly 93 years were filled with his love of life, learning, religious studies, adventure, exploration, science, and most of all family. Here’s to Horace on the 133rd anniversary of his birth.