| PAGE | |
| Taking Possession for France | Frontispiece |
| Spanish Arms | 1 |
| Ship of the Sixteenth Century | 2 |
| Isabella of Spain | 3 |
| Medal of Charles V. | 5 |
| Ponce de Leon | 6 |
| Balboa discovering the Pacific | 8 |
| French Map of 1542. From Jomard | 10 |
| De Soto | 11 |
| Soldier of 1585 | 12 |
| Cuban Bloodhound | 14 |
| Departure of the Spaniards | 16 |
| Burial of De Soto | 19 |
| Florida Warrior | 21 |
| Palisaded Town | 23 |
| A Florida Indian's Cabin | 24 |
| Making a Canoe | 25 |
| A Chieftain's Grave | 26 |
| Processional Fans | 27 |
| Rock Inscriptions, New Mexico | 29 |
| Map, New Mexico. Route of Spanish Invaders | 31 |
| Junction of the Gila and Colorado | 34 |
| Organ Mountains | 36 |
| El Paso del Norte | 38 |
| A Pueblo Restored | 41 |
| Acoma | 43 |
| Casa Grande, Gila Valley | 44 |
| Ruins of Pecos | 47 |
| Cereus Gigantea | 49 |
| Pueblo Idols | 50 |
| Hieroglyphics, Gila Valley | 51 |
| Map, California Coast | 55 |
| Sir Francis Drake | 57 |
| Drake sails away | 58 |
| Old Map showing Drake's Port | 60 |
| Carmel Mission Church | 61 |
| Spanish Map of 1787, showing Missions, Presidios, and Routes | 63 |
| Map from Arcano del Mare, 1647 | 64 |
| Ships of the Sixteenth Century | 68 |
| A Wood Ranger | 70 |
| Champlain | 72 |
| A Portage | 73 |
| Totem of the Foxes | 76 |
| French Costumes | 77 |
| Fox River | 78 |
| Louis XIV. | 82 |
| Marquette's Map | 86 |
| Wild Rice | 87 |
| Totem of the Illinois | 89 |
| War Canoe, from Lahontan | 90 |
| The Calumet | 91 |
| La Salle | 94 |
| Map showing La Salle's Explorations | 95 |
| Wampum Belt | 102 |
| Sioux Chief | 107 |
| Sioux Totem | 108 |
| Sugar Plant | 120 |
| Map showing Delta of the Mississippi and Adjacent Coast | 122 |
| Bienville | 124 |
| French Soldiers | 126 |
| New Orleans, 1719 | 129 |
| Abandoned Hut, North-west Coast | 133 |
| Hudson's Bay Company's House, London | 135 |
| Hudson's Bay Sled, loaded | 136 |
| Indian Mask, West Coast | 139 |
| Seals, St. Paul's Island | 140 |
| Russian Church, Alaska | 141 |
| Snow Spectacles, Alaska | 144 |
| Indian Carving | 144 |
| Indian Grave, North-west Coast | 155 |
| Queen Elizabeth | 148 |
| Falls of St. Anthony | 151 |
| Indian Burial Scaffold | 152 |
| Map, Mouth of Columbia River | 157 |
| Medal, Ships Columbia and Washington | 159 |
| An Oregon Belle | 161 |
| A Flat-Boat | 164 |
| On the Lower Mississippi | 167 |
| A Louisiana Sugar-Plantation | 176 |
| French Settlements: Germ of St. Louis | 177 |
| Old Convent, New Orleans | 179 |
| Map, St. Louis and Vicinity | 180 |
| Chouteau's Pond, St. Louis | 181 |
| Rock Towers near Dubuque | 182 |
| Mountain Goat, or Big-horn | 185 |
| Indians moving Camp | 186 |
| A Mandan | 188 |
| Mandan Skin Boats | 190 |
| Gate of the Rocky Mountains | 193 |
| Catching Salmon, Columbia River | 196 |
| Map illustrating Lieut. Pike's Explorations | 199 |
| Indian Burial-place | 200 |
| Pike's Peak | 202 |
| The Yucca-tree; Spanish Bayonet | 205 |
| Church, Santa Fé, with Fort Marcy | 207 |
| An Emigrant's Camp | 217 |
| Map illustrating Long's Explorations | 220 |
| Prairie-dog Village | 221 |
| Digging in the River for Water | 222 |
| Statue of Benton | 229 |
| Fort Laramie | 235 |
| Amole, or Soap-plant | 237 |
| San Antonio | 242 |
| The Alamo | 244 |
| Samuel Houston | 245 |
| Mexican Cart | 249 |
| Mexican Arastra, for grinding Ores | 250 |
| Pueblo Woman grinding Corn | 253 |
| Boy and Donkeys | 254 |
| Pueblo of Taos | 255 |
| Big Tree | 257 |
| Map showing States and Territories acquired from Mexico | 259 |
| California Indians and Tule Hut | 260 |
| El Capitan, Yosemite | 262 |
| Salt-Lake City and Tabernacle | 265 |
| Sutter's Mill | 272 |
| Two Miners | 274 |
| The Golden Gate | 276 |
| Chinese Laundryman | 277 |
| A Father | 280 |
| Mount Shasta | 281 |
| On the Oregon Trail | 282 |
| San Francisco in 1849 | 283 |
| Early Coin | 284 |
| Hydraulic Mining | 286 |
| Chicken-Vender | 287 |
| Mission San Xavier del Bac, near Tucson | 289 |
| Stephen A. Douglas | 291 |
| A Squatter's Improvements | 296 |
| Street, Kansas City, 1857 | 297 |
| Lawrence, Kansas | 298 |
| The Ferry, Lawrence, Kansas | 300 |
| A Squatter moving his Claim | 301 |
| Mud Fort, Lawrence | 303 |
| John Brown | 304 |
| John Brown's Cabin | 305 |
| Gate, Garden of the Gods | 309 |
| Humors of the Road | 310 |
| Denver in 1859 | 311 |
| Overland Stage—in Camp | 311 |
| Going in | 312 |
| Coming Out | 312 |
| Office of "Rocky-Mountain News," Denver | 312 |
| Colorado City, 1859 | 313 |
| Quartz Stamping-Mill | 314 |
| Quaker Gun at Stage Station | 315 |
| Pony Express and Overland Stage | 317 |
| Track-laying, Pacific Railroad | 319 |
| Reaping-Machine | 327 |