Thomas L. McKenney and James Hall. “Pee-Che-Kir. A Chippewa Chief.” From The History of the Indian Tribes of North America.
Philadelphia: J. T. Bowen & Co., 1848-50. 5 ¾ x 5 (image). Octavo edition. Lithograph with original hand coloring. Very good condition. A/A
A print from the octavo version of McKenney-Hall’s Portrait Gallery of American Indians. These prints document an important part of American history, the great leaders of the Indian nations that have disappeared since the mid-19th century. Thomas McKenney, head of the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs for many years, was a champion of the Indian and fought throughout his tenure to preserve something of their culture, so integral a part of the history of the United States. His legacy was a gallery of portraits of the great chiefs for which he commissioned artists such as James Otto Lewis, Charles Bird King, and George Cooke.