Photographs made by William R. Pywell documenting the Yellowstone Expedition of 1873. They comprise images of the expedition's camps, transportation, and members including George Armstrong Custer and Bloody Knife. The collection contains images of human remains.
Scope and Contents note:
Stereoscopic photographs made by William R. Pywell documenting the Yellowstone Expedition of 1873. They comprise images of the expedition's camps, transportation, and members including George Armstrong Custer and Bloody Knife.
Biographical/Historical note:
William Redish Pywell (1843-1886) received photographic training from Alexander Gardner and worked as a photographer in a Washington, D.C., studio owned by Matthew Brady during and after the Civil War. After opening his own studio in Washington, Pywell became official photographer for the Yellowstone Expedition in 1873.
Historical Note:
Comprised primarily of US Army cavalry and infantry, the Yellowstone Expedition of 1873 was organized to escort and protect the Northern Pacific Railroad Survey. Colonel David S. Stanley led the expedition, with Lieutenant Commander George Armstrong Custer second in command. The War Department also charged Stanley with exploring the region and reporting back on the natural features and resources. As such, a small scientific corps consisting of a paleontologist, geologist, mineralogist, zoologist, botanist, photographer (Pywell), and artist accompanied the expedition. The party set out to Yellowstone from Fort Rice in Dakota Territory in June of 1873, returning in September.
Location of Other Archival Materials:
The National Archives holds Pywell negatives transferred by the BAE circa 1948 (Record Group 106) and the E. Marshall Pywell Photographic Collection, circa 1874 - circa 1975. Additional records of the Yellowstone Expedition can be found in Record Group 391 and 393.
This accession consists of incoming and outgoing divisional correspondence concerning specimen identification, data exchanges, manuscripts, grant proposals, exhibits,
and other activities of the Division of Mollusks.
Photographs of sketches made by Charles Alexandre Lesueur in 1816-1837 documenting archeological sites in Indiana and Kentucky, Choctaw Indians of the Mississippi River in Tennessee and Louisiana, and Plains Indian artifacts, probably seen and sketched at St. Louis, Missouri.
The Museum of Natural History at Le Havre holds the majority of Lesueur's artwork.
The Purdue University Archives and Special Collections holds a collection of Charles Alexandre Lesueur works of art on paper.
Contained in:
Numbered manuscripts 1850s-1980s (some earlier)
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Rights:
This collection is for reference only. Additional prints should be secured from Victor Genetier, and permission to publish should be secured from the Havre Museum.
Topic:
Indians of North America -- Southern states Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs
Citation:
Photo Lot R4534, Photographs of Charles Alexandre Lesueur sketches relating to American Indians, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
