Open Collections

Valley of the Mooyie River N.W. Boundry[sic] 1860

1860

1 painting : watercolour ; 22 x 56 cm

Paintings; Landscapes

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Also known as the Moyie River, the river is a tributary of the Kootenay River (spelt Kootenai in the United States) and spans through southeast British Columbia and into Idaho. On verso of frame, typed: "J.M. ALDEN / VALLEY OF THE MOOYIE RIVER N.W. BOUNDRY / 1860 / (showing out through the forest on the / boundry[sic]) ; Another note on verso of frame, typed: "Alden, James Madison / MOOYIE RIVER VALLEY FROM MONUMENT W. SIDE RIVER LOOKING E. / ALONG THE 49th PARALLEL / University of British Columbia - Special Collections / watercolour 1859 / "The line of demarcation...was an absurdity in a land where natural boundaries such as rivers and mountain ranges are / to be found in all directions...It marched up unscalable / mountain precipices and plunged into swampland and bog... / The terrain was so difficult that the commissioners jointly / decided they wouldn't try to clear or even work the whole / boundary. Here and there, instead, they would pin down / astronomical points and cut a swath twenty feet wide for a / mile on either side." / Herman Deutsch, 'Surveying the 49th Parallel, 1858-61.'

Original Format: University of British Columbia. Library. Rare Books and Special Collections

Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library

10.14288/1.0214761