Art
In 1848, a modest oil painting captured Fred Adelbert Haywood, likely a merchant or tradesman. Portrait-making was one of the few ways ordinary Americans could preserve their image for family and memory—a luxury becoming more affordable in the prosperous decades before the Civil War.
Art · Full story
Fred sits in his best coat, chin slightly raised, eyes steady. The painter works quickly and economically, capturing enough likeness to satisfy without grand flourishes. His wife or children might recognize him instantly; that was all that mattered.
Reflect
Who in your family keeps a photograph or painting of someone they wanted to remember?