Seth Eastman

Seth Eastman, later Brigadier General, was a 19th-century painter, topographer, and draftsman renowned for his depictions of U.S. military posts, western landscapes, and Native American life. His works, including paintings of historic forts like Fort Defiance and Fort Rice, are housed in the U.S. Capitol. Eastman’s military service included roles as military governor of Cincinnati and commander at various posts in New York, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania. A 1829 West Point graduate, he served with the First Infantry at Fort Snelling in Minnesota. Eastman studied art with Robert Weir and exhibited at the National Academy of Design. In 1837, he published a book on topographic drawing and later created over 400 paintings of frontier Indians. His skill led to a transfer to Washington, D.C. in 1850, where he contributed over 300 illustrations to Henry Rowe Schoolcraft’s work on North American Indians.