Born in Frankfurt, Germany, in 1825, Adolf Hoeffler was the son of the painter Herinrich Hoeffler. Hoeffler became an artist himself, studied art in Germany and toured Europe before traveling to America in 1848. While in America, like many artists of the time period, he made his living painting portraits and sketched the scenery in his spare time. His American travels took him from New Orleans to the Midwest, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland and New York. He also visited Cuba before returning to Europe in 1853. Back in Europe, he published illustrated accounts of his travels in Harper's Magazine, traveled the continent and taught art in Frankfurt. Today he is remembered as a painter, sketch artist and etcher of German, Italian and American landscapes.