W&M ScholarWorks Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects 1998 The domestication of history in American art: 1848-1876 Jochen Wierich College of William & Mary - Arts & Sciences Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd Part of the American Studies Commons, History of Art, Architecture, and Archaeology Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Wierich, Jochen, "The domestication of history in American art: 1848-1876" (1998). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1539623945. https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21220/s2-qc92-2y94 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 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THE DOMESTICATION OF HISTORY IN AMERICAN ART 1848-1876 A Dissertation Presented to The Faculty ofthe American Studies Program The College of\Villiam and Mary in Virginia In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy by Jochen Wierich 1998 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: 9936911 Copyright 1999 by Wierich, Jochen All rights reserved. UMI Microform 9936911 Copyright 1999, by UMI Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. UMI 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, MI 48103 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. APPROVAL SHEET This dissertation is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy t/ Jochen Wierich ApprovecL August 1998 / ~-----;-- ; Catherine Levesque 1 ( l I •- - ti ) "\ ~ j I • (\MJ../AI\A_../ William Truettner National Museum of American Art, Washington, D.C. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Table of Contents Acknowledgments lV List of Illustrations vi Abstract ix Introduction: History Painting as Cultural Conflict 1 Part I Chapter 1: History Painting and Institutional Change 43 Chapter 2: Private Patronage for History Painting 82 Chapter 3: History Painting and the Critical Profession 113 Part II Chapter 4: Emanuel Leutze: Contested "High Art" 138 Chapter 5: Lilly Martin Spencer: Gender, Genre, History 200 Chapter 6: Eastman Johnson: Low Life and "High Art" 236 Conclusion: History Painting and the Centennial 273 Bibliography 294 Illustrations 313 Vita 335 iii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Acknowledgments I consider this dissertation a culmination in several ways. It is, of course, the final product of my graduate studies at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg. It is also a personal milestone, marking the distance from where I am today to where I was when I became curious in older American art as an exchange student at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. Before that my only encounters with American art were through exhibitions of twentieth-century American art in German museums. My instinct is to thank all the individuals who helped me on the way. Space constraints make it more expedient to be concise. Among those individuals who shaped my thinking about American art and culture before I entered graduate school on the Ph.D. level, I want to thank especially Martin Christadler, Olaf Hansen, Herwig Friedl, Hubertus Giinther, and William Oedel. My decision to venture into graduate school followed after two years as a museum professional under the generous mentorship of D. Scott Atkinson. I am indebted to Scott for providing crucial professional and intellectual support. Thanks to Roger Stein and Margaretta Lovell for their encouragement and advice when it came to moving on to graduate studies. With much gratitude and humility do I acknowledge my principal dissertation advisor, Alan Wallach. On a personal and professional level, I feel fortunate to have studied with him. Alan was a patient and exacting teacher, reader, and advisor throughout graduate school. Moreover, Alan was sensitive to the linguistic and conceptual challenge I faced in translating my ideas across cultures. I am grateful to the other members on my dissertation committee: Richard Lowry, Grey Gundaker, Katherine Levesque, and iv Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. William Truettner. Rich also deserves much credit for being a consistent source of inspiration beyond the dissertation. Many more people offered their encouragement and advice during different stages of the dissertation, including Terry Lachin, Robert Haywood, Robert Scholnick, Robert St. George, Robert Gross, Mary Panzer, Elizabeth Johns, Barbara Groseclose, Angela Miller, and Sylvia Yount. I am thankful to many librarians and archivists at various institutions in the United States and Germany, including those at the Library of Congress, National Museum of American Art, Archives of American Art, Kunstmuseum DUsseldorf, Kunstakademie DUsseldorf, Pennsylvania Historical Society, and New-York Historical Society. Family and friends helped me in so many tangible and intangible ways. Never in this life can I sufficiently thank my mother, Anneliese Wierich. My aunt, Gerda (Danni) Wierich deserves a special Dankeschon. I want to thank Jean Brown, who was much more than an administrator, Robin Veder, Emily Mieras, Mat Cohen, Gretchen Schoel, Marie Maxwell, Larry Jackson, and Richard Shuster for being available and keeping my spirits up. Some friends in Germany did not have the chance to be around and give their support, but they were present in spirit, including Thomas Nischann, Anne Lux, Reinhard Flessner, and Sunil Bansal. v Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. List of Illustrations Fig. l. Daniel Huntington. The Republican Court (also known as Lady Washington's Reception). 1861. 66 x 109 inches. The Brooklyn Museum; Gift of the Crescent-Hamilton Athletic Club. Fig. 2. Francis William Edmonds. The Image Pedlar. ca. 1844. 33 x 42 inches. The New-York Historical Society, New York. Fig. 3. John Trumbull. The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker's Hill. June 17. 1775. 1786. 25 x 34 inches. Yale University Art Gallery. Fig. 4. Francis William Edmonds. Sparking. 1839. 19 15/16 x 24 inches. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Fig. 5. Richard Caton Woodville. War News from Mexico. 1848. 27 x 24 314 inches. The Manoogian Foundation, on loan to the National Gallery of Art. Fig. 6. Emanuel Leutze. Landing ofthe Northmen. 1845. Sammlung Vollmer, on loan to the Kunstmuseum DUsseldorf. Fig. 7. Emanuel Leutze. Washington Crossing the Delaware. 1851. 149 x 255 inches. The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Gift of John Stewart Kennedy, 1897. Fig. 8. Winslow Homer. Prisoners from the Front. 1866.24 x 38 inches. The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Gift ofMrs. Frank B. Porter, 1922. Fig. 9. Thomas Pritchard Rossiter and Louis Remy Mignot. Washington and Lafayette at Mount Vernon. 1859. 87 x 146 112 inches. The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Bequest ofWilliam Nelson, 1905. vi Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Fig. 10. Emanuel Leutze. Westward the Course ofEmpire Takes Its Way. 1862. 20 x 30 feet. United States CapitoL Fig. 11. Emanuel Leutze. The Storming ofthe Teocalli. 1848. 84 3/4 x 98 3/4 inches. Wadsworth Atheneum; The Ella Gallup Sumner and Mary Catlin Sumner Collection Fund. Fig. 12. Emanuel Leutze. Washington Rallying the Troops at Monmouth. 1853-54. 156 x