Background:
These American Indian prints are from McKenney and Hall's
History of the Indian Tribes of North America. They portray chiefs,
warriors and squaws of various tribes of American Indians.
Originally published in the 1830s, these Indian
prints are from an early 1900s edition published in England that had a limited
run of only 200 copies.
Thomas McKenney (1785-1859) and James Hall
(1793-1868) collaborated on this project, regarded by many as a landmark work on
preserving a record of a disappearing culture. McKenney, who had been Director of
the Office of Indian Affairs until 1839, provided the information that Hall used to author
the accompanying biographical sketches. Hall had been an Illinois journalist and
lawyer who had written extensively about the West.
Many of the paintings on which the prints are
based had been destroyed in the Smithsonian fire of 1865. This re-inforces the
importance of this work in providing a visual record of prominent Indian leaders of the
early 19th century.
Provided with each print is a copy of the
introductory pages of the biography authored by Hall.
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