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Engraving entitled
"George Washington At Home"
Dated 1867
- My research has uncovered only one other Engraving of "George Washighton at Home". This
resides at at the
Miller Library at Washington College, in Chestertown, MD. I
was also unable to locate the original painting, but it and other copies of the Engraving, may
reside in private collections, as this one does. One of the remarkable things about Engravings, is
that they have the same texture and visual feel as newly minted currency. There is that same
sharpness and clarity, that makes for a truly amazing visual experience.
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Notes on the bottom of the Engraving:
- Text on the left side:
Painted by Alonzo Chappel
Note: American painter (1828 - 1887) -
- Title, centered at the bottom of the Engraving:
"WASHINGTON AT HOME" -
- Center above Title, at the very bottom of the Engraving:
"Entered according to Act of Congress A.D. 1867 by H.B. Hall Jr. in the Clerks Office at the District
Court for the Southern District of New York" -
- Centered below the Title:
Published By W. J. Holland, Springfield, Mass.
Note: Typically, Alonzo Chappel did paintings for Johnson, Wilson & Co. Publishers of New
York. I believe that this is the only painting that he did for W. J. Holland.
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- Right side:
Engd by H. B. Hall
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Excuse the glare on the framed shot, but I had trouble photographing it due to the thickness,
waves, and bubbles of the original glass. The other shots are of the actual Engraving before it was matted.
The frame, which I believe to be original, measures 25.5" x 32", while the actual Engraving (the
picture itself) measures 17.5" x 23". The Engraving is loose and not glued or attached in any way. It's all
properly matted with acid proof matting, paper, etc.
The following concerns the children in the Engraving:
- George Washington was unable to have children. This was due to a Tuberculosis related illness he had. The
children were Martha's from her first marriage with Daniel Parke Custis (they were married in 1749
and then Daniel Parke Custis died suddenly in 1757). While married, they lived at his estate,
called the White House fittingly enough, in New Kent, VA.
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- The girl pictured is Martha ("Patsy") Parke (1757-1773), who died in 1773 at the age of 16, of
"fits", or seizures, probably caused by epilepsy.
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- The boy is John ("Jacky") Parke (1754-1781). He served briefly as a civilian
aide to General Washington in 1781. After he contracted an illness, presumably typhoid, at the
Battle of Yorktown, he was taken to Eltham, VA, the home of his aunt and uncle, Anna Maria and
Burwell Bassett (right across the river to the west of West Point Military Academy). His wife,
Eleanor Calvert, Mrs. Washington, and General Washington were all present when he died.
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