Hayden Survey of 1871

In 1871 Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden (1829-1887) led the Hayden Geological Survey, the first federally-funded exploration of the Wyoming region that would be established as Yellowstone National Park in 1872. Among those on the Survey was William Henry Jackson (1843-1942), later recognized as one of the foremost artists and photographers of the American West.

More than six decades after the Survey, Jackson—now in his early nineties—was called upon to create original works of art depicting the West as part of the interpretive displays for a museum slated to open in the U.S. Department of the Interior's newly constructed headquarters building in 1938. Jackson painted several pieces, including a series representing the four major geological surveys of the West (Hayden, Wheeler, King, Powell).

This oil painting on beaverboard captures a scene—informed by Jackson's personal experiences—from the Hayden Survey. Indeed, Jackson painted himself in the background setting up his equipment to photograph the geyser. Shown riding on the lead horse in the foreground grouping is Hayden, followed by Nathaniel Pitt Langford (1832-1911) and then artist Thomas Moran (1837-1926). Although Langford was not part of the 1871 expedition, Jackson took artistic liberties to include him in this painting in recognition of Langford's historical connection to Yellowstone. Langford was part of the 1870 Washburn-Langford-Doane expedition which first brought attention to the Yellowstone region and served as the impetus for Hayden's subsequent survey. Additionally, Langford became Yellowstone National Park's first superintendent (1872-77).