Surveying the West

Gustavus Sohon (1825-1903)
Explorations in 1859 [showing Mullan Road in Eastern Columbia River Plateau]
Gift of the Sohon Family
Geography & Map Division (114.10a)

Council with Friendly Nez Perces Indians Held by Col. G. Wright, U.S.A, August 4, 1858, near Fort Walla Walla
Pencil on paper
Purchased from Leigh Carter
Geography & Map Division (114.10b)

Gustavus Sohon, a German immigrant, was employed by the U.S. government between 1852 and 1863 as an illustrator and cartographer of explorations of the Rockies and Pacific Northwest. During his last five years of federal service, he worked under Col. George Wright, who headed a military expedition associated with the building of the Mullan Road, a 624-mile long military wagon road constructed to connect the Columbia and Missouri rivers. Sohon, a gifted illustrator, captures the Nez Perce Indians in council with Col. Wright, near Fort Walla Walla, Washington, prior to his campaign over the Columbia River Plateau in late summer 1858.