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Self-Guided Tour of the Reading Room Portsmouth Athenaeum

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Self-Guided Tour of the Reading Room Portsmouth Athenaeum Self-Guided Tour of the Reading Room Portsmouth Athenaeum Reading Room Copy – Please leave for others to enjoy 1 Courtesy of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, Portsmouth, N.H. Introduction This history of the Portsmouth Athenaeum and content highlights of the Reading Room is divided into sections: - Introduction - Paintings, Documents and Artifacts in the Reading Room - Resources available, see staff person for access - A Brief History of the Portsmouth Athenaeum The Portsmouth Athenaeum, a Library and Museum, was founded in 1817 at a time when there were no public libraries, and books were costly and hard to find. Sixteen such institutions remain in the United States. Its articles of incorporation stated that the Athenaeum was to be a repository for “valuable and rare productions in the various arts and sciences”. The collections throughout the building, acquired over many years, largely by gifts and bequests, reflect that original goal. The proprietors (original members) purchased this building from the New Hampshire Fire and Marine Insurance Company. Following disastrous fires in Portsmouth in the early 1800s, this was one of the first brick building to be built and one of the finest on Market Square. The back room has a very unusual curved door, attesting to the skills of early Portsmouth woodworkers. The large, main room has always been used as both a reading room and a meeting place. In an 1879 memoir, Proprietor Frank Hackett wrote “It was the custom of the prominent business and professional men of the town, with a sprinkling of retired sea captains, at the close of the business day to drop into the Athenaeum for a social chat.” The two cannons which stand outside the front door were taken by Commodore Perry at the Battle of Lake Erie on September 20, 1813. They were later used to arm merchant ships owned by the Peirce family of Portsmouth. In recent years the Proprietors have worked to expand the Athenaeum’s role as a community resource. The library is open to the public several days each week and a variety of exhibits are displayed in the Randall Gallery upstairs. The Athenaeum’s vast collections, some of which are stored offsite, are also available on line for research. See Resources Available at the back of this folder for a description. For further information, see A Brief History of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, Charles E. Clark and Michael A. Baenen at the back of this folder. 2 Courtesy of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, Portsmouth, N.H. Paintings, Documents and Artifacts in the Reading Room To begin the tour, face the front door and look to your right. Two Naval Portraits (top of wall) Sir Richard Spry – Rear-Admiral Sir Richard Spry (1715–1775) is depicted in an oil painting by John Smibert, 1746, wearing a blue coat trimmed with gold and a red waistcoat. He is pointing with his right hand to a naval battle scene. In 1743, he was appointed to the Superbe, which bore the pennant of Commodore (Later Admiral) Sir Charles Knowles. In 1744 while in command of the Comet Sir Richard Spry captured a heavily-armed French privateer in a 5-hour fight off Nantucket. In recognition, he “received a handsome piece of plate at Boston.” In September 1746 he joined Rear-Admiral Peter Warren at Louisbourg. He was promoted to be captain of Warren’s flagship, the Superbe. Returning to England in 1746, he was appointed to the Chester, in which Warren flew his flag. In November he went to the East Indies with Boscawen and took part in the siege of Pondicherry. Through the summer of 1756 he was with the squadron blockading Louisbourg. He served at the reduction of Louisbourg by Boscawen in 1758. Sir Richard returned to England in 1769. In 1773 he held a command in the fleet when the king reviewed it at Portsmouth and was subsequently knighted. He became Rear-Admiral in 1775 and died the same year. (bottom) Sir Charles Knowles – Sir Charles Knowles (1702-1777) was also involved in the capture of Louisbourg and became Governor after its capture. He holds a telescope in his right hand and, in full wig, wears an Admiral's uniform. A sailing ship on the horizon is visible below his left elbow. The oil painting, c. 1745, was given to the Athenaeum in 1828 or 1829. Charlestown, N.H. was named in honor of Sir Charles Knowles in 1753. 3 Courtesy of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, Portsmouth, N.H. Two Life-sized Portraits (left) Sir Peter Warren – British Admiral, Sir Peter Warren, commanded the British naval forces at Louisbourg, Nova Scotia. His left hand points to the naval ships, a normal artistic approach of the period to reference his military calling. This original oil painting is by John Smibert, 1746. (right) Sir William Pepperrell – British Lt. General, Sir William Pepperrell, organized the capture of Louisbourg from the French, 1745. This painting is an 1895 copy by Portsmouth artist Ulysses Dow Tenney, of the Smibert original, 1746. The original is at the Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA. Sir William Pepperrell was a Kittery, ME resident, then part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Ship Eudora – Two views, day and night, of the ship Eudora hang below Sir Peter Warren and Sir William Pepperrell. The Eudora was built in Berwick, ME, and wrecked off the coast of Cornwall, England in 1810. The water color paintings are by William Heath, c. 1811, and have hung in the Athenaeum building since 1812. The NH Fire & Marine Insurance Co. insured the ships, and the paintings were left when the Athenaeum purchased this building in 1823. 4 Courtesy of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, Portsmouth, N.H. Eagle Wood Carving – The carving is by John Haley Bellamy (1836-1914) of Kittery Point, ME. The eagle, c. 1900, with an open beak is looking right with spread wings and the American flag at the base. The neck and feathers are gilded. Lending Library Desk – The “standing” desk against the wall was made by Williams Evans of Portsmouth and was purchased in 1827. It is one of the early standing reading tables at the Athenaeum. Chippendale Mahogany and Rush Corner Chair – The chair, 1760-1780, is probably Boston- made, and is believed to have belonged to Langley Boardman, an early Athenaeum proprietor. (left) Mary Pepperrell Frost – This oil painting, 1710, is attributed to Pepperrell Limner. The subject is the sister of Sir William Pepperrell who was married to John Frost of New Castle. (right) The Honorable John Frost – This oil painting, c. 1710, is of John Frost of New Castle who was a merchant and Provincial Counsellor, married to Mary Pepperrell, sister of Sir William Pepperrell. He wears a long, full wig and holds calipers in his left hand. The English gold oval frame with carved ornament is possibly the original. 5 Courtesy of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, Portsmouth, N.H. (left) Unknown Child – This rectangular portrait of a young boy standing, full-length, turned slightly to his left, holding a bird in his right hand and pink flowers in his left, is, perhaps, from 1710-1720. The painting was re-stretched at one time for an oval frame and the marks of the oval frame are still visible. This, along with the *"Unknown Woman", described below, came together from the Benning Wentworth House and were given to the Athenaeum in 1886. (right)*Unknown Woman – This English painting, c. 1710-1720, hung in the Gov. Benning Wentworth Mansion prior to being given to the Portsmouth Athenaeum in 1886. The portrait of a lady is in a gilded rectangular frame with a pink flower on the bodice in three-quarter view. See reference to “Unknown Child” above. The two paintings were mentioned in Ann Cushing Coffin‘s will and are believed to have belonged at one time to Governor John Wentworth. (left) Madam Mary Richards – The widow of George Richards, painted in oil in England, is mid- 18th c. This portrait in landscape of a woman holding a purple flower in her right hand is Mary Richards who was later married to George Frost, of New Castle, after 1740. She died in England without having come to this country. 6 Courtesy of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, Portsmouth, N.H. (right) Woodbury Langdon – This oil portrait is said to be of Woodbury Langdon and is by Joseph Blackburn, painted in England. Woodbury Langdon (1738-1805) was a prominent Portsmouth merchant and the brother of Governor John Langdon. (center wall) (left) Samuel Hale – This portrait, c. 1828, is of Samuel Hale, Jr. (1823-1861), by Joseph G. Cole. He was a Proprietor of the Athenaeum, a long-term Trustee of Phillips Exeter Academy, and the grandson of Major Samuel Hale of Portsmouth. (right) Clementina Jaffrey – The portrait, c. 1814, of Mrs. George Jaffrey IV, the former Clementina Matilda Wethered of Delaware, is attributed to Henry Williams of Boston. 7 Courtesy of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, Portsmouth, N.H. Nathanial Adams – Commissioned by the Athenaeum, this portrait is of the first President of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, and was painted by Joseph G. Cole in 1829. Portrait of a Man – The life-sized oil on canvas portrait, c 1829, of a seated gentleman by Joseph Greenleaf Cole (MA, 1806-1858), is Nathaniel Haven Sr. The back of the canvas is inscribed "Painted by/Joseph G. Cole/1829" and the painting is in its original deep cove, gold frame. 8 Courtesy of the Portsmouth Athenaeum, Portsmouth, N.H. George Jaffrey – The oil painting, c 1814, is attributed to Henry Williams. George Jaffrey IV (born Jeffries) (1789-1856) was a founder and longtime librarian of the Athenaeum. George Jaffrey III willed his estate to his young cousin on condition that he change his name to Jaffrey.
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