Thomas L. Mckenney Paintings

Thomas Loraine McKenney was not an artist by profession, but he played a significant role in the history of American art due to his efforts to document the images of Native American leaders and culture during the early 19th century. Born on March 21, 1785, in Hopewell, Maryland, McKenney would become most well-known for his role as the Superintendent of Indian Trade within the War Department of the United States, a position he held from 1816 to 1822, and subsequently as the head of the newly formed Bureau of Indian Affairs from 1824 to 1830.

During his tenure, McKenney was instrumental in the government's 'civilization policy,' which aimed to assimilate Native Americans into European-American culture. Despite the paternalistic and colonial nature of this policy, McKenney was genuinely interested in the lives and cultures of Native American peoples. He commissioned and collected portraits of Native American leaders who visited Washington, D.C., recognizing the importance of documenting these figures before their ways of life were potentially altered forever by increasing contact and conflict with European settlers.

To preserve these images, McKenney envisioned the creation of a gallery and ultimately collaborated with the artist James Otto Lewis and later with Charles Bird King, who painted the majority of the portraits. McKenney was also responsible for the collection of these portraits in the Indian Gallery in the Department of War, which was unfortunately destroyed by a fire in 1865.

After leaving his government position, Thomas McKenney continued his mission to preserve Native American heritage by collaborating with James Hall to produce the 'History of the Indian Tribes of North America.' This three-volume series, published between 1836 and 1844, included biographies of Native American leaders and was illustrated with hand-colored lithographs based on the original paintings from the Indian Gallery. While the textual accuracy of these biographies is a matter of historical debate, the images remain an invaluable record of these individuals.

McKenney's efforts inadvertently created one of the most significant collections of Native American portraiture of the 19th century. The lithographs from 'History of the Indian Tribes of North America' have become iconic representations of Native American leaders during this period. Thomas L. McKenney died on February 19, 1859, in New York City. Although not an artist himself, his dedication to documenting and preserving the images and stories of Native American peoples has left an indelible impact on American historical art and cultural preservation.