[1] He is noted for his portraits of notable American figures of the post civil war period and for his works with Oriental themes.

Born Franz Buchser on 15 August 1828 near Solothurn in Switzerland, he was the son of a farmer, Niklaus Josef and his wife Anna Maria, née Walker.

A personal highlight of his travels was a visit to Fez, Morocco in 1858 where he painted many street scenes and pictures of the Bedouin people.

He caught up with a military expedition led by General William T. Sherman and painted scenes of the places they visited, including Fort Laramie.

The remainder are mostly independent sketches, often executed with spiritedly rapid strokes, which show the artist's pronounced sense of color and light.