Snags on the Missouri
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Artist
Karl BodmerBirth and death dates
1809 - 1893Artist Nationality
SwissTitle
Snags on the MissouriDate
April 13, 1833Dimensions
6 7/16 × 8 3/4 in. (16.4 × 22.2 cm)Medium
Wash and graphite on paperInstitution
Joslyn Art MuseumCredit Line
Gift of the Enron Art FoundationAccession Number
1986.49.129Rights (i.e. copyright information)
Joslyn Art MuseumPhotographer credit
Photograph © Bruce M. White, 2019Commentary
Travel on the Missouri River in the nineteenth century was greatly encumbered by driftwood. Steamer pilots had to navigate carefully among these dangerous piles and hidden snags embedded in the sandbanks beneath the surface. Islands often were formed in the river by the accumulation of such material, and a ship's entire company might be enlisted to drag a craft over or around them using huge hawsers called cordelles. At other times keelboats were used to take off cargo to reduce the ship's draft over shallow stretches of the river. On the Missouri only a few miles above St. Louis, Maximilian noted in his journal that "navigation is very dangerous on the Missouri. Large heaps of wood on both sides in the water leave only a narrow channel for us."
References in Journal
April 13, 1833Approximate Depicted Location:
Missouri River, Missouri