Fort McKenzie at the Mouth of the Marias River

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Artist

Karl Bodmer

Birth and death dates

1809 - 1893

Artist Nationality

Swiss

Title

Fort McKenzie at the Mouth of the Marias River

Date

August 1833

Dimensions

10 7/8 × 17 in. (27.6 × 43.2 cm)

Medium

Watercolor and graphite on paper

Institution

Joslyn Art Museum

Credit Line

Gift of the Enron Art Foundation

Accession Number

1986.49.211.a

Rights (i.e. copyright information)

Joslyn Art Museum

Photographer credit

Photograph © Bruce M. White, 2019

Commentary

Erected in 1832 above the mouth of the Marias to replace another post built by James Kipp farther downstream, Fort McKenzie was the westernmost outpost of the American Fur Company on the Missouri River at the time of Maximilian's visit.  The voyage upriver from Fort Union, covering a distance of approximately 650 river miles, had taken thirty-four days according to Maximilian's reckoning. The return downriver was accomplished in less than half that time. Bodmer's watercolor view of Fort McKenzie furnished a setting for the scene reproduced as Tableau 42 in the later atlas of aquatints issued in Europe. The published version describes a dramatic incident involving conflict between the rival Blackfeet and Assiniboins that occurred at Fort McKenzie on August 28.

References in Journal

9 August, 1833

Labels:

structure , Fort McKenzie, Montana

Approximate Depicted Location:

Fort McKenzie, Montana