Possibilities

They agreed on one general object—that of bettering their condition, but the particular means by which each proposed to attain his end, were as various as can well be imagined.

    – Jesse Quinn Thornton on the settlers who were migrating to Oregon, 1846


The American West during the latter half of the nineteenth century supported a remarkably heterogeneous population. Complementing the region’s diverse Native presence, settlers from throughout the United States—and many parts of the world—decided to make the West their home. These new inhabitants came for different reasons, but for many the possibility of achieving economic and religious freedom was most important. In the West it was believed that one could reinvent oneself, and often this dream was realized. Yet the arrival of so many people also caused new frictions that led to dissension, intolerance, and sometimes violence. It also prompted reform; movements such as populism, temperance, women’s suffrage, unionism, and Native American rights emerged as significant issues in the West. The individuals in this section played important roles in transforming the West’s identity and its relationship with the rest of the nation and the world.


Go West


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Click to enlarge imageBrigham Young 1801–1877
Attributed to Marsena Cannon (1812–1900)
Sixth-plate daguerreotype, c. 1850
Click to enlarge imageHorace Greeley 1811–1872
Unidentified photographer
Quarter-plate daguerreotype, c. 1850
Click to enlarge imageAnn Eliza Young 1844–after 1908
Thomas Houseworth (1828–1915)
Albumen silver print, c. 1875
         

Gold Rush


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Click to enlarge imageLola Montez 1818–1861
Meade Brothers Studio (active 1842–70)
Sixth-plate daguerreotype, c. 1851
Click to enlarge imageSeated Man with Chinese Servant
Unidentified photographer
Sixth-plate daguerreotype, c. 1855
Click to enlarge imageDomingo Ghirardelli 1817–1894
George H. Johnson (c. 1823–?)
Albumen silver print, 1860
         

Crime


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Click to enlarge imageJesse James 1847–1882
Unidentified photographer
Albumen silver print, 1882
Click to enlarge imageJames Butler Hickok 1837–1876
Unidentified photographer
Tintype, c. 1876
Click to enlarge imageRobert Dalton 1869–1892
J. F. Standiford (lifedates unknown)
Albumen silver print, c. 1889
         
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Click to enlarge imageCalamity Jane 1852–1903
George W. Potter (lifedates unknown)
Printing-out paper print, c. 1896
Click to enlarge imageThe Wild Bunch
John Swartz (lifedates unknown)
Gelatin silver print, 1900
Click to enlarge imageLaura Bullion 1876–1961
Unidentified photographer
Gelatin silver print, c. 1901
         


Reform


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Click to enlarge imageRichard H. Pratt 1840–1924
John N. Choate (1848–1902)
Albumen silver print, 1880
Click to enlarge imageZitkala-Ša 1876–1938
Joseph T. Keiley (1869–1914)
Glycerine-developed platinum print, 1898
Click to enlarge imagePlenty Coups c. 1848–1932
Willem Wildschut (1883–1955)
Gelatin silver print, c. 1921
         
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Click to enlarge imageSara Bard Field 1883–1974
Johan Hagemeyer (1884–1962)
Gelatin silver print, 1927
Click to enlarge imageCarrie Nation 1846–1911
White Studio (active 1903–36)
Gelatin silver print, c. 1903
Click to enlarge imageJeannette Rankin 1880–1973
L. Chase (lifedates unknown)
Gelatin silver print, c. 1917
         

Entertainers


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Click to enlarge imageAnnie Oakley 1860–1926
John Wood (active 1865–1890)
Albumen silver print, c. 1885
Click to enlarge imageWilliam S. Hart 1870–1946
Unidentified photographer
Gelatin silver print, c. 1917
Click to enlarge imageGloria Swanson 1897–1983
Karl Struss (1886–1981)
Platinum print, 1919
         
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Click to enlarge imageWilliam F. Cody 1846–1917
Unidentified photographer
Woodburytype, 1887
Click to enlarge imageTom Mix 1880–1940
Unidentified photographer
Gelatin silver print, 1918
Click to enlarge imageCecil B. DeMille 1881–1959
Karl Struss (1886–1981)
Gelatin silver print, 1919
         
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