Linnaeus Apostle: Pehr Kalm

Carl Linnaeus chose Pehr (Peter) Kalm for the expedition to North America to survey and collect plant specimens. Linnaeus described him as “tall and towering, and with a manly and agreeable countenance.” Kalm was born in Finland in 1715, son of a Lutheran minister. His father died soon after his birth, and his mother returned with her son to her family home Sweden in 1716. He attended college at Åbo University in Finland, and then enrolled at Uppsala University in Sweden in 1740, where he studied under Carl Linnaeus. Between 1740 and 1744, Kalm studied, travelled, and collected plant specimens in Finland, Sweden, and Russia, financed by Sten Carl Bielke.

Kalm was a distinguished student, with an inquisitive mind, and well liked. In 1747, Kalm was selected to make an expedition to North America to look for useful agricultural plants for Sweden’s climate. He was sponsored by Åbo University, Uppsala University, and several partners from industry. He was well versed in the Linnaeus binomial naming system, and a perfect candidate to be a Linnaeus Apostle.

Pehr Kalm (oil on canvas, signed J.G. Geitel, c. 1764
(some uncertainty whether the portrait depicts Kalm)

England to North America

At 31 years of age, Kalm headed by ship first towards Norway, and then to London, England on the first step of his journey to North America. He spent six months in England, becoming familiar with its flora and fauna and arranging for his passage. On July 25, 1948, Kalm and his associate, Lars Yungstram (a botanist, gardener, and artist), set sail on the HMS Mary Galley, commanded by Captain Lawson. They had mild weather and a surprisingly easy journey, and arrived in Maryland after only six weeks (the trip could take as a long as 14 weeks). They then sailed to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania where Kalm and his associate disembarked. On the journey, and for the whole expedition, Kalm kept a journal recording daily events, observations about people, customs, and flora and fauna.

Learn more:

• The IK Foundation – provides detailed information about natural and cultural history, including Carl Linnaeus and his apostles: http://www.ikfoundation.org/ifacts/pehrkalm.php
• The Linnaean Society of London – provides a comprehensive online collection of information, correspondence, specimens, art, and documents: http://www.linnean-online.org/.
• Linnaeus The Compleat Naturalist by Wilfrid Blunt. Princeton University Press, Princeton and Oxford (2004). Chapter 6, “The Apostles,” pages 185 – 186.