Asher B. Durand (1796–1886), a central artist of the Hudson River School, spent nearly twenty-four years as a successful commercial engraver. His talent as an engraver was based on his drawing skills, explaining his insistence on the importance of outline, the precise renderings in his sketchbooks and drawings, and his devotion to sketching with graphite outdoors. The artist’s empiricism and dedication to Nature is evident in ten sketchbooks (two fragmentary from sketchbooks now disassembled) held by the Historical Society. Although Durand's drawings, including those in the sketchbooks, were primarily for personal study, they played a central role in his aesthetic process.