Water, The Ultimate Highway
In the early nineteenth century, rivers were the equivalent of a modern-day road or highway, transporting people, materials, and ideas. This is especially true for the place we currently call western Illinois because of its proximity to the Mississippi River. By analyzing artwork and maps of the region, we can gain an appreciation for the importance of water to the people who live here at this time.
Henry Lewis’s 1826 painting of Quincy, Illinois
Henry Lewis’s 1826 painting of Quincy, Illinois shows a steam boat drifting down the Mississippi River, surrounded by rolling hills and scattered buildings. The painting shows what Quincy looked like at the time: the populated surroundings, buildings of all kinds, and a church. (This suggests that western settlers were well established in the area). It seems as though the town peaked at the height of waterway travel, since after automobiles, trains, and air travel started to boom the town became harder to find in maps and paintings.
Nauvoo, Illinois by Henry Lewis
Another of Lewis’s paintings focuses on Nauvoo, Illinois, and depicts a similar scene. It suggests a less heavily populated area, but with what looks like a factory with smoke escaping from the top, alluding to a potential for industry. While cities may have attracted many who sought to be among similar people in terms of values, beliefs, backgrounds, and collective goals, rural areas also offered the potential for new kinds of work.
Burlington, Iowa by Henry Lewis
Lewis also painted Burlington, Iowa, at night. While much of the town is in darkness, there is a fence to the right along the river bed, which suggests settlers have arrived. Since this painting was issued between 1854 and 1857, it is more than likely that settlers were indeed present.
In a map of Illinois made by the Geographisches Institut of Germany in 1826, we can see the reach of American settlement into this region. The Illinois River is a border of sorts – all major settlements are southeast of it suggesting that there was still a large area of land unoccupied by European settlement. The center of the state is left barren, which suggests a lack of human habitation. This is however not an accurate depiction of Illinois’ population at the time – but it does tell us that the map maker thought that Americans were more important than Native people.
By Lydia Hanrahan
The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library. "Quicy, Illinois." New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 20, 2021.
The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library. "Nauvoe, Illinois." New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 20, 2021.
The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library. "Burlington, Iowa." New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 20, 2021.
Geographisches Institut (Weimar, Thuringia, Germany). Illinois., map, 1826; Weimar. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth190358/m1/1/: accessed May 19, 2021), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting University of Texas at Arlington Library.