La Salle Crossing Lake Michigan on the Ice. December 8, 1681

George Catlin created the oil-on-canvas painting La Salle Crossing Lake Michigan on the Ice in 1850. The work remained in the artist's possession until his death in 1872, after which it passed by descent to his three daughters: Clara Gregory Catlin, Louise Catlin Kinney, and Elizabeth Wing Catlin. In 1912, the American Museum of Natural History acquired the piece from Elizabeth Wing Catlin.

The museum sold the painting in 1959 through Kennedy Galleries in New York to collector Paul Mellon of Upperville, Virginia. Mellon subsequently donated the work to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., in 1965, where it remains part of the collection.

La Salle Crossing Lake Michigan on the Ice is held by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. The painting entered the museum’s collection in 1965 as a gift from Paul Mellon, who had acquired it in 1959 through Kennedy Galleries from the estate of Elizabeth Wing Catlin. Prior to that, it had been owned by the American Museum of Natural History after its purchase from the Catlin family in 1912. The work is catalogued as part of the Mellon gift accession.

La Salle Crossing Lake Michigan on the Ice, an 1850 oil on canvas history painting by George Catlin, illustrates the 1681 crossing of Lake Michigan by the French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle. The work belongs to Catlin’s broader series documenting early American exploration and frontier encounters, a focus that figures prominently in scholarship on his contribution to 19th‑century American art. Measuring 37.8 cm by 56.4 cm, the canvas entered the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., in 1965 after a sale to Paul Mellon via Kennedy Galleries; its provenance traces back to the artist’s descendants.

Art historical analyses place the painting within the tradition of history painting and note its significance for representing early exploration in United States visual culture.

George Catlin's 1848 oil on canvas, La Salle Crossing Lake Michigan on the Ice, December 8, 1681, captures a specific moment from early American exploration. This painting is an example of a history painting, a genre that often depicts significant historical events. It portrays the French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, navigating the frozen expanse of Lake Michigan, underscoring a theme of human endeavor against natural elements.