The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris

Pulitzer Prize-winning author David McCullough’s non-fiction book The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris (2011) offers an in-depth account of important nineteenth-century artists and thinkers who emigrated from America to Paris, achieving great things within the realms of culture and innovation.

The book starts out in the 1830s, as artists, physicians and writers flock from the United States to Paris in search of inspiration and an opportunity to better themselves and their professional pursuits. The passengers must brave the three- to six-week passage across the Atlantic aboard cargo ships, facing the very real risk of sinking. In order to pass the time, the Americans busy themselves with reading, chatting amongst themselves, and observing the sea. When they arrive in France, they are awestruck by the Old World, causing them to view America in a new light.

As they head toward Paris, they are disturbed by the filth and poverty they observe while traveling through the French countryside. Only when they finally reach the center of Paris do they come to understand the reasons for the high praise of the French capital. Welcomed warmly in the city, they come to appreciate the French culture and the history that abounds within the place, including the specific locations where the Founding Fathers lived while working on a treaty with France during the Revolution.



Paris is renowned as a place of outstanding institutions of study and learning. Charles Sumner leaves his budding law firm in Boston in exchange for the opportunity to attend the Sorbonne. After many years of learning and being exposed to the liberal culture in Paris, Sumner returns to America to become a U.S. Senator, and one of the strongest voices and advocates for abolition. Having the reputation of being the medical capital of the world, the city draws young physicians such as medical student Oliver Wendell Holmes. The education these medical students receive in Paris has a profound impact on the American medical world.

In 1832, a cholera epidemic breaks out, causing most Americans to decide to leave Paris. The death toll is high and the disease continues to spread, making its way through France. Only the medical students remain to help deal with the massive number of people in need of medical attention.

From 1833 until 1845, Paris becomes a place of great innovation for American artists and thinkers alike. George Healy is one of the more renowned artists whose aspirations come to fruition during this period. After being commissioned to paint a portrait of King Louis-Philippe, Healy begins a career as a historical artist, focusing mainly on portraits of Americans such as former President Andrew Jackson.



King Louis-Philippe becomes increasingly unpopular in the country and is forced to abdicate in February 1848. Richard Rush, the new ambassador to France, arrives in Paris just in time to witness the extreme unrest as France transitions into a republic. The political changes produce unintended social and economic consequences that are devastating for the citizens of Paris. Social unrest pervades the capital, leading to the deaths of many. Despite this, Americans continue to come to Paris, among them Margaret Fuller, a Transcendentalist leader, and Elizabeth Blackwell, the first female American doctor. George Healy returns to paint his most well-known work, Webster’s Reply to Hayne. William Wells Brown, a former slave turned abolitionist, author, and playwright, finds a new home in Paris, a place which embraces him in a way that never would have been possible for him in America.

In the midst of the unstable political climate, Louis Napoleon seizes power and is proclaimed Emperor Napoleon III. He immediately sets out to rebuild Paris, widening the streets into the boulevards for which it is known today. The sidewalks also are expanded, allowing cafés to place tables and chairs outside for the first time. When Napoleon III becomes unpopular, he flees to England.

During their time abroad, the young Americans often struggle with homesickness and culture shock, feeling out of place in a land so foreign to them. This challenge inspires some to thrive and produce their best work, while others flounder, overcome by the challenge of life in the Old World. In addition to the culture, there are language barriers as most Americans do not speak French and very little English is spoken in Paris at the time. In addition to these ordinary and expected stresses, many of the years between the 1830s and the end of the century see Paris in political strife, specifically following the end of the Franco-Prussian War. There is much civil unrest during this period, leading to the deterioration of the city and the lifestyle so coveted by American ex-patriots.