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At the Institute’s core is the Gilder Lehrman Collection, one of the great archives in American history. More than 85,000 items cover five hundred years of American history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World through the end of the twentieth century.

Powell, William Henry, (1823-1879) De Soto's Discovery of the Mississippi.

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC08878.0002 Author/Creator: Powell, William Henry, (1823-1879) Place Written: New York, New York Type: Engraving Date: 1858 Pagination: 1 print : b&w ; 21.5 x 27 cm. Order a Copy

One engraving entitled "De Soto's Discovery of the Mississippi" dated 1858. Depicts De Soto, riding a white horse, arriving at the Mississippi River at a point below Natchez on May 8,1541. Native Americans watch in front of their tepees, and a chief holds out a peace pipe. Artillerymen with weapons, armor, and a cannon are pictured in the foreground. To the right, a monk prays as men set a crucifix in the ground. Published by Johnson, Fry & Co., New York. Based on the painting by William Henry Powell.

Powell, William Henry, 1823-1879
De Soto, Hernando, fl. 1500-1542

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