Seth Eastman, born in 1808, was both a painter and avid military man. He studied at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, graduating in 1829. He served as an Army officer for 4 years after graduating and again in 1855 in Texas. Eastman was also a worked in the office of the Quartermaster General in Washington D.C. Eastman worked as an assistant teacher of drawing at West Point from 1833-40, where he published the "Treasie on Topographical Drawing". In 1850, he gained recognition for producing 300 illustrations that were published in a six volume series about the life of the American Indian. His sketches were mostly of the Dakota and Chippewa Indians. Eastman was commissioned by Congress to paint a series of American Indian scenes and Western Forts for the Capitol Building. This work consumed the rest of his life. Eastman died in 1875.

Biography courtesy of The Caldwell Gallery, www.antiquesandfineart.com/caldwell