The DeLamar nugget. [volume] (DeLamar, Idaho) 1891-1900, 1891-08-25
AN INTERESTING CAREER.
History Of an Artist Who Painted
a Picture Three Miles Long.
A Panorama of the Entire Mississippi
River Drawn from Sketches Made
While He Was Travelling in
a Canoe.

John Banvard, the artist, died the
other day in Watertown, S. D., of heart
failure. His career as an artist, trav-
eler and an adverturer was unique and
interesting, says the New York Times,
and the story of his life is full of Incl
dents that go beyond the usual.
He was born in New York about 1920,
and his youthful days were spent in
study of drawing and painting, for
which he showed decided taste at an
early age. When he was fifteen years
old his father died, after losing his
property, and the boy went to Louis
ville, where he worked for q time as a
clerk in drug store. A year later he
had opened a studio and established
himself as an artist. He did not long
remain in Louisville, but after painting
several pieces he started out to earn his
living by exhibiting them, and he Wis
tied New Orleans, Natchez, Cincinnati,
and other towns, going by boat, and
sometimes giving exhibitions on flat
boat fitted up for the occasion.
He made scanty living and met
many adventures and hardships. One
of his pictures, made about this time,
was a panorama of Venice, which he
painted wholly from imagination, and
afterward exhibited with success.
While on one of his river trips, Mr..
Banvard conceived the idea OF painting
q panorama of the entire Mississippi
river 1t was his ambition to paint the
largest picture in the world. He set
about it in 1S40 Alone, in an open
skiff, with no outfit except his rifle and
his drawing instruments, he Travelled
thousands of miles When his rifle
failed to bring him necessary food he
painted pictures and exhibited them to
make money enough TO buy food and re-
plenish his materials.
For more than year he lived in this
way, and when his preparatory draw
ings were done he erected q building in
Louisville, where they were transferred
to canvas and first exhibited. The
artists ambition was realized. The
painting was the largest ever made,
and, complete, it covered three miles
of canvas II was one of the wonders
of the day, after the people heard about
it, and was exhibited in many cities OF
this country and abroad, attracting
much attention.
After series of exhibitions IN Eu-
rope the artist travelled extensively in
Asia and Africa and painted many pic
lures which were exhibited. Among
these was a panorama called Pictures
and Poetry of Palestine" and another
composed of three pictures, ''First Bat
tlc-field Of History, Siege of Jcrusa-
lem Destruction of the Temple" and
|'Ruins, of Edom.''
During Che war Mr.. Banvard pointed
out to Gen. Fremont how Island No. 10
could be passed by canal and certain
bayous, and he made charts showing the
route. HIS Suggestions were afUerward
successfully followed. He was a pro-
life writer and was the author of about
seventeen hundred poems, several hun
dred of which have been published in
magazines here and in Great Britain.
He also published "a Description of
the Mississippi River" pilgrimage to
the Holy Land" 'Amasis; or, The Last |
of the Pharoahs,' ''The Private Life
of King" and Tradition OF the Tenn
ple''
Two of his dramas have been acted; |
E'Amas1s," at the Boston theater in |
1864, and ''Carrinia, . at the Broadway |
theater in 1878. One of his paintings,
1.-THE Orison," was the picture from
which the first chrome made in Amer
lea was taken. Nearly quarter of
century ago Mr.. Banvard established
his panorama in what was then
Woods museum on Broadway, which
afterward became Days theater.
Here his pictures were exhibited, and,
with his lectures, attracted considerable
attention.
Critics have said that Mr.. Banvard's
pictures were not great in artistic
merit. They wereeremarlzable because
of their magnitude and the rapidity
with which he made them. When ex-
hibiting his panorama he accompanied
the pictures with a descriptive lecture,
which often was a feature Of his enter