Portrait of Tenskwatawa 

Heald painted this piece shortly after moving to Prophetstown, IL in 1917. It was commissioned by the Henry C. Adams Memorial Library and hangs there to this day. Tenskwatawa was known as The Prophet after having a prophetic vision in 1804. 

In this portrait, Heald shows Tenskwatawa looking towards the sky, head tilted slightly back. This could be alluding to his visions and his position as a prophet. It is also interesting that Heald decided to show Tenskwatawa in profile and especially interesting that she depicted his missing eye. She could have easily painted the other side of his face, but she purposefully included the missing eye. Heald also depicts Tenskwatawa in a war bonnet, which was probably not something he would have worn, but Heald may have included it as a sign of respect towards Tenskwatawa, or it may have been a request by the Library. 

Zapffe, Carl. Old Timers: Stories of Our Pioneers. Minnesota: Echo Publishing and Printing, Inc. 1988.

“Tenskwatawa (U.S. National Park Service).” Accessed July 19, 2024. https://www.nps.gov/people/tenskwatawa.htm.