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Period: to
Hudson River School of Art
The Hudson River School of Art, based out of New York state, enjoyed its peak years between 1830 and 1870. -
"Nature"
Ralph Waldo Emerson declares that God is one with nature and nature is one with God in his essay "Nature." This philosophy was held by many Luminist painters of the time. -
The Pakenham Letter
John C. Calhoun wrote to Pakenham, the British minister in Washington, hoping to reunite the South under the guise that the annexation of Texas meant not only the support of expansion of slavery, but the right of Americans to expand as far westward as possible. Annexation of Oregon was also on the table with the Pakenham letter. -
Gold Rush
James W. Marshall's discovery of gold in California sparked the westward movement of large groups of settlers to California where they would become miners and gold panners. -
Kindred Spirits
Asher Brown Durand painted "Kindred Spirits" around 1849. -
Ostend Manifesto
The Ostend Manifesto asserted American authority and Manifest Destiny in an attempt to seize Cuba from Spain to further American expansion, especially the expansion of slavery in America. -
The Life of a Hunter: A Tight Fix
Arthur Fitzwilliam Tait painted "The Life of a Hunter: A Tight Fix" in 1856. -
The Homestead Act
The Homestead Act of 1862 awarded free plots of land to anyone over the age of 21 who was also the head of their household so long as the land was improved in 5 years. If not, settlers had the option to buy plots of land instead. This encouraged many to move westward and start a new life sustained mostly through agriculture and livestock raising. -
Haystacks
Martin Johnson Heade painted "Haystacks" between 1871 and 1875 as part of the Luminist movement, a branch-off from the Hudson River School.
