John James Audubon 1785-1851 JOHN JAMES AUDUBON The American Woodsman: Our Namesake and Inspiration John James Audubon (1785-1851) was not the first person to attempt to paint and describe all the birds of America (Alexander Wilson has that distinction), but for half a century he was the young country s dominant wildlife artist. His seminal Birds of America, a collection of 435 life-size prints, ...