Jeremy Goldstein

As a collector, Roger was undeterred and he was methodical.

But after 10 years, one book still eluded him.

It's the cornerstone of any serious Lewis and Clark collection, a first edition copy of the first official account of the expedition.

It's a two-volume set, published in 1814.

Fewer than 1,500 copies were ever printed.

But the price tag, often around $10,000, had always scared Roger off.

Then in 1994, he took a $49 flight to Los Angeles for the L.A.

Book Fair.

The 1814 became Roger's calling card.

It established him as an expert in all things written about Lewis and Clark.

And then something happened.

Roger started to read his books.

Before this, he'd occasionally pull out a book and read a random passage.

But now he started to plow through whole books front to back.

After 18 months of looking for a route to the ocean, they finally reach the Pacific.

Last week, Roger made a pilgrimage of sorts to see for the first time the original handwritten journals that Lewis and Clark kept during their expedition.

They're the books that everything Roger ever bought are descended from.

Most of the journals are stored at the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia.

They're in remarkable condition.

As a librarian turned the book's crisp pages for Roger, flipping past detailed maps and intricate drawings of animals, Roger barely moved or spoke.