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William de la Montagne Cary

American, 1840-1922

BiographyWith a thirty-year career as a western illustrator based in New York City, William Cary made his first trip West in 1861 in an ox-wagon train along the Missouri River bound for Fort Benton where he narrowly escaped capture by the Crow Indians. From Fort Benton, he set out with a cook and guide and stayed at Fort Union for six weeks, where he observed life among the Assiniboine Indians nearby. He also signed on with a survey crew, which led him to the West Coast, and from there he took a ship back to New York City, In 1874, he took his second and last trip West, joining the John Mullan railroad survey to travel to Walla Walla, Washington.
On his travels he often drew famous leaders of the Plains from life, among them Buffalo Bill, Custer, Sitting Bull, and Rain-in-the-face. Most of his illustrations were based on a combination of memory and sketches from these trips.
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Born: June 30, 1840, Tappan, New York. Died: January 7, 1922
William de la Montagne Cary expressed an early interest in animals and hunting scenes. His father taught him how to draw and at 14, he apprenticed to an engraver. In 1861, he traveled the Missouri River by steamboat and accurately depicted the West before the influx of settlers and transcontinental railroads. Cary sketched and participated in many Native American activities, ceremonies, and buffalo hunts. He later used these sketches for reference in paintings and magazine illustrations. Cary also kept an extensive journal of his expedition, which was published many years later in 1895. In 1874, he made his second trip west with the Northern Boundary Survey to the upper Missouri, documenting the changes that had taken place since his previous journey. Cary's illustration career spanned nearly 30 years, and his paintings have been informative to many historians.

National Museum of Wildlife Art

Person TypeIndividual

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