Digital History

Date:1872

Annotation: John Gast’s painting, American Progress (1872), is an artistic representation of the slogan, “Manifest Destiny,” coined by John L. O’Sullivan in 1845. In his painting, Gast illustrates the westward movement of America and industrialization. The left side of the painting shows Native Americans on horseback and a herd of buffalo being approached by American civilization such as horse-drawn wagons, steam engines, and telephone wires.