Robert Havell, Jr. came to the United States from England in 1839 with the intention of sketching and publishing views of American scenery, which were enjoying enormous popularity, both in America and abroad. During the 1840s he made extensive sketching trips along the Hudson in a horse-drawn carriage outfitted for sleeping. Havell's works from this period are noteworthy, as they record the landscape surrounding the Hudson on the cusp of the extensive changes brought about by industrialization in the mid-nineteenth century.

During the 1840s and 1850s Havell executed a series of canvases depicting significant locations along the Hudson River. In these images he fused both topographical and picturesque approaches to landscape. He composed his pictures with careful attention to the sweep of the shoreline or prominent geological formations, while at the same time he added decorative elements such as a flock of sheep or a foot traveler.

In View of the Hudson River Near West Point Havell depicted the landscape surrounding the Hudson as a pastoral, largely agrarian setting. Although the presence of civilization can be seen across the river in the form of various farmhouses and cultivated fields, the wild qualities of the American landscape assert themselves nonetheless. For example at right a hawk swoops down to capture a pair of smaller birds -- a gesture perhaps to Havell's friendship and business venture with the great artist and naturalist John James Audubon.