Looks like trapping Painted Buntings for the caged bird trade was common even in the late 1800. This quote comes from "Birds and Nature, A Monthly Serial, January-June, 1887".  There is no author listed, only the copyright: "by A. W. Mumford, 1900" courtesy of John Gerwin from the NC Science Museum:

THE NONPAREIL  ".....Thousands of these birds are trapped for the cage, and sold annually to our northern people and also in Europe.  They are comparatively cheap, even in our northern bird markets, as most of them are exchanged for our Canaries and imported birds that cannot be sent directly to the south on account of climatic conditions".