"No other nation has taken a time and place from its past and produced a construct of the imagination equal to America's creation of the west."
(David Hamilton Murdock quoted in Slatta p. 81)
In the essay "Making and Unmaking Myths of the American Frontier," Richard Slatta examines three historical themes of the west: rugged individualism, American exceptionalism and frontier violence. While proven to not be based on fact, these are the core of the creation story of the western U. S.
Studies have shown that there is very little basis for attributing these attributes to the people of the time (Slatta 81). Yet the myths are so powerful, so pervasive that they permeate contemporary culture. Although Slatta's work concentrates on the late 19th century, we can take a the same approach for the myths created around the pre-Civil war steamboat era.
Literature, from classic works to dime novels, have shaped public fascination with the steamboat era, none more so than those by Mark Twain. To pick just one of his works, commonly acknowledged as one of his best, Life on the Mississippi , published in 1883, romanticizes the experiences of a steamboat pilot, and beyond that steamboating as a whole. Steamboatmen must master all the twists and undulations of the river. Depths have to read and obstacles determined (Rasmussen). The steamboat pilot, who apparently answered to no one, was an example of a rugged individualist. Yet there is not mention in the book of the blacks that made the operation of the steamboat possible. They were the woodcutters and haulers, they operated the steam engine, they cooked the meals, did the housekeeping and waited on the cabin passengers, making Twain's life possible (Buchanan 5).
Renewing Twain's nostalgia for pre-Civil war steamboating, Thomas Hart Benton (the artist, as opposed to the "Manifest Destiny" politician) romanticized the time with illustrations for a mid-20th century re-issue of Twain's work.
Illustrations from Life on the Mississippi by Thomas Hart Benton:
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| Life on the Mississippi - Frontispiece - Thomas Hart Benton |
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| Different Kinds of Moonlight - Life on the Mississippi - Thomas Hart Benton |
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| Phantom Steamer - Life on the Mississippi - Thomas Hart Benton |
Slatta goes on to say that the visual arts are largely responsible for the myths of the American frontier (83-84). George Caleb Bingham, an artist contemporary to our story, is now know as the "riparian" artist. An exhibition of his work titled "Navigating the West: George Caleb Bingham and the River" was featured this fall at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In her review of the show, Karen Wilkens points out the "all male cast of robust characters grouped as it on stage." Here are two examples:
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| Jolly Flatboatmen in Port - Oil on canvas - 1857 - St. Louis Art Museum |
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| Lighter Relieving a Steamboat Aground - Oil on canvas - 1847 - White House Historical Association |
