Daniel Huntington Study Portrait Collection
Call Number
Date
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
The collection holds 141 portrait photographs used by Huntington for his study of the subjects painted by him.
Biographical Note
Daniel Huntington (1814-1906) was educated at Hamilton College. He studied painting with Samuel Morse and Henry Inman in New York City. He primarily painted portraits and landscapes. Huntington was president of the National Academy of Design, and Vice-President of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Arrangement
Photographs are filed alphabetically by sitter; life dates and vocations were added during processing.
Scope and Content Note
Two years after Daniel Huntington's death, his son Charles Richards Huntington (1847-1915) presented the New-York Historical Society with a collection of 141 portrait photographs used by his father "for his study of the subjects painted by him." Each of the men (and the single woman, Mary McCrea Stuart) in the collection is represented by one or more portrait photographs which had been blown-up to life-size dimensions, sometimes made from a previously existing negative or one made of an earlier photograph. In the case of sitters who died before the advent of paper photography, images were taken from daguerreotypes. The enlargements were mounted on a stiff paperboard and roughly trimmed almost to the shape of the subject's head. Each of the portraits has the sitter's surname in pencil on the verso; some have a shorthand clue to an occupation, profession, title, or institutional affiliation. These annotations, if contemporary to Huntington or his son, have been transcribed in the box and folder list that follows. Many of the photographs have a puncture at their top, most likely from the nail Huntington used to tack them up in view of his easel.
The sitters are familiar to students of nineteenth-century New York: they include prominent bankers, merchants, industrialists, educators, financiers, generals, lawyers, judges, politicians, government officials, and men of the cloth. The photographs are generally not dated. Several note that they were made from daguerreotypes and a few mention particular photographers, or are mounted on the backs of printed boards from photographers' studios. The images that are dated range from the 1870s (Henry Potter) to the 1890s (Kelly, Gracie, Schurz, and Sheldon). Photographers mentioned are Bogardus (Adams, Arthur) and Sarony (Tilden), with one annotated by Huntington as having been taken in his studio (Sherman). Eight of the portraits are mounted on the verso of stamped boards from the Rockwood Studio (Brown, Gracie, Johnston, Henry Potter, Taft, and Weir) or Kurtz (Dodge Sr. and Hostetter) in New York. In addition, the portrait of Henry Codman Potter is mounted on the verso of a large photograph of Calvary Baptist Church, on West Twenty-third Street.
Oil portraits of these sitters are now in the New York Chamber of Commerce Collection at the New York State Museum, the Smithsonian Institution, Metropolitan Museum of Art, the American Museum of Natural History, New York Public Library, Harvard University, Vassar College, and West Point Museum, among other institutions. The New-York Historical Society owns more than twenty portraits painted by Huntington. Other portraits remain in private collections, including those of social clubs, hospitals, corporations, and the families who commissioned them from the artist.
Subjects
Genres
Topics
Access Restrictions
This collection may be stored offsite. For information on arranging to consult it, please go to www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.
Use Restrictions
Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff. Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282.
Preferred Citation
This collection should be cited as: Daniel Huntington Study Portrait Photographs, PR 256, Department of Prints, Photogaphs, and Architectural Collections, The New-York Historical Society.
Provenance
Gift of Charles R. Huntington, April 9, 1908.
About this Guide
Processing Information
Processed by Jenny Gotwals and Sandra Markham, circa 2003. Finding aid revised by Marybeth Kavanagh, 2025.
Edition of this Guide
Repository
View Inventory
Adams, William (1813-1897), clergyman
General note
On verso:(taken by Bogardus photographer)
Arthur, Chester Alan (1830-1886), politician
Aspinwall, William Henry (1807-1875), businessman
Avery, Samuel Putnam (1822-1904), art dealer, philanthropist
Babcock, Samuel D. (1822-1902), banker
Beardsley, Samuel (1790-1860), judge, politician
General note
On verso: (perish commerce perish credit)
Blatchford, Samuel (1820-1883), judge
Booth, Henry Matthias (1843-1899), clergyman, educator
General note
On verso: of Auburn [Theological Seminary]
Brown, James (1791-1877), banker
Brown, James M. (1820-1890), banker
Bruce, George (1781-1866), typefounder
General note
On verso: from daguerreotype
Cameron, James Donald (1833-1918), politician
General note
On verso: Senator Cameron, Sec of War
Chittenden, Simeon Baldwin (1814-1889), merchant
Clark, Luther C. (d. 1877)
Colgate, Robert (1812-1885), merchant
Coxe, Arthur Cleveland (1818-1896), clergyman
General note
On verso: Bishop of Western New York (Buffalo)
Curtiss, Cyrus (d. 1879), merhcant [2 images]
General note
On verso: of Washington Life Insurance Co.?
Davis, Noah (1818-1902), judge
Dodge, William E., Sr. (1805-1883), merchant
Dodge, William E., Jr. (1832-1903), businessman [2 images]
Drisler, Henry (1818-1897), educator
General note
On verso: Prof
Dwight, Theodore W. (1822-1892), educator [3 images]
General note
On verso 1 & 2: of Columbia Law School; on verso 3: of Law School Columbia
Edwards, Henry Pierrepont (1809-1855), judge
General note
On verso: (from a Daguerre)
Field, Benjamin Hazard (1814-1893), philanthropist
Field, Cyrus West (1819-1892), capitalist [2 images]
General note
On verso #2: capital likeness D.H.
Fry, Charles M. (1822-1892), merchant, bank president
Frelinghuysen, Frederick Theodore (1817-1885), politician [2 images]
Gallatin, Albert (1761-1849), politician, diplomat
General note
On verso: from a daguerreotype
Gardiner, John Lyon (1841-1920), gentleman
Garrison, Cornelius K. (1809-1885), businessman [2 images]
General note
On verso: "Com"[modore]
Gracie, James King (1840-1903), philanthropist
Hallgarten,Julius (1842?-1884), banker
General note
On verso: from the small photo
Hamilton, Alexander, Jr. (1816-1889), lawyer
General note
On verso: afterward President of Astor Library Trustees
Hastings, Thomas S. (1827-1911), clergyman
Hayes, Rutherford Birchard (1822-1893), politician [3 images]
General note
On verso #2: after his presidency
Hoffman, Eugene Augustus (1829-1902), clergyman, educator [2 images]
General note
On verso: Dean Hoffman
Hoffman, Samuel Verplanck (1802-1880), lawyer
General note
On verso: father of Dean H. of the Seminary
Hostetter, David Herbert (1819-1888), manufacturer
Hunt, Wilson G. (1804-1892), merchant
Jacobi, Abraham (1830-1919), doctor, educator
James, Daniel Willis (1832-1907), merchant
Jesup, Morris Ketchum (1830-1908), financier [2 images]
Johnston, John Taylor (1820-1893), railroad president
General note
See: Folder 12
Jones, John Divine (1814-1895), businessman
General note
On verso: Pres of Atlantic Ins. Co.
Kelly, Eugene (1806-1894), banker
General note
On verso: 1891
Kelly, William (1807-1872), philanthropist
Kendrick, Henry L. (1812-1891), educator
General note
On verso: of West Point
Kennedy, Robert Lenox (1822-1887), banker [2 images]
General note
On verso #2: too severe - but very like
King, Richard (d. 1891), businessman
General note
On verso: Prest of Bank of Commerce
Lauterbach, Edward (1844-1923), lawyer, politician
Lenox, James (1800-1880), philanthropist
General note
On verso: This is quite large enough rather larger than life
Lincoln, Robert Todd (1843-1926), lawyer, politician
General note
On verso: (son of Pres. Lincoln Secy of War)
Low, Abbot Augustus (1843-1912), inventor
Low, Seth (1850-1916), educator, politician [2 images]
General note
On verso #1: when Pres. of Columbia
General note
On verso #2: Pres. Columbia University & Mayor of N.Y. & Bklyn
Lyman, Theodore Benedict (1815-1993), clergyman
General note
On verso: Bishop of N Carolina
McGee, James (d. 1898), businessman
McLane, James Woods (1839-1912), doctor, educator
Martin, Charles Jackson (d. 1888), businessman
General note
On verso: Prest Home Insurance
Mills, Darius Ogden (1825-1910), banker
North, Edward (1820-1903), educator
General note
On verso: Prof Ham College
Nye, Ezra (1798-1866), sea captain
General note
[from a daguerreotype]
Owen [Owens?], Thomas J. (d. 1881?), shipping merchant
General note
On verso: painted June 1882 taken from another (much earlier) photograph
Parker, Amasa Junius (1807-1890), judge
Phelps, John Jay (1810-1869), merchant
General note
On verso: father of Wm Walter Phelps [1839-1894]
Phelps, Royal (1809-1884), merchant
General note
On verso: he was in bad health & died soon after this was taken
Pierrepont, Henry Evelyn (1808-1888), philanthropist
General note
On verso: of Brooklyn NY
Potter, Henry Codman (1834-1908), clergyman
General note
On verso: of Grace [Church] (about 1875)
Prentice, Ezra Parmalee (1797-1876), businessman
General note
On verso: of Albany
Prime, William Cowper (1825-1905), lawyer, educator
General note
On verso: V Prest of Metr Mus of Art
Pruyn, Robert Lansing (1825-1906), businessman
Raven, Anton Adolph (1843-1919), businessman
General note
On verso: of Atlantic Mutual Ins Co.
Ray, Robert (1794-1879), banker
Rolston, Roswell Graves (1838-1898), businessman
General note
On verso: Prest Farmers Loan & Trust Co.
Roosevelt, Theodore Sr. (1831-1878)
Sage, Henry Williams (1814-1897), businessman, philanthropist
General note
On verso: of Ithaca
Schermerhorn, William Colford (1821-1903), philanthropist
General note
On verso: Prof Ham College
Schurz, Carl (1829-1906), politician, diplomat
General note
On verso: 1899
Schwab, Gustav (1822-1888), businessman
Scott, Thomas A. (1823-1881), railroad man
General note
On verso: of Philada (before his paralysis)(good likeness)
Sheldon, James O. (1823-1907), banker
General note
On verso: 1899
Sheridan, Philip Henry (1831-1888), military
Sherman, John (1823-1900), politician [2 images]
General note
On verso #1: taken in my studio DH
General note
On verso #2: taken when Secy of the Treasury
Sibley, Hiram (1807-1888), industrialist, philanthropist
General note
On verso: (died July 1888)
Silliman, Benjamin (1805-1901), lawyer
General note
On verso: Council for Bank of Commerce too old (when taken) but about right for him now 1888 / yes-good yet in 1898
Smith, Gerrit (1797-1874), philanthropist
Stokes, James Boutler (1804-1881), banker
General note
On verso: father of Anson Phelps Stokes
Stranahan, James Samuel Thomas (1808-1898), politician
General note
On verso: (of Brooklyn)
Stuart, Robert L. (1806-1882), merchant, philanthropist [3 images]
Stuart, Mary McCrea [Mrs. Robert L.] (d 1891), philanthropist
Sturges, Jonathan (1802-1874), merchant
Sutherland, Jabez Gridley (1825-1902), judge
Taft, Alphonso (1810-1891), politician
Thomas, Lewis (d. 1880), grain merchant
General note
On verso: (of Produce Exchange)
Thompson, David (d. 1871?), businessman
General note
On verso: NY Life & Trust?
Tibbits, George Moritimer (1796-1878), gentleman
General note
On verso: Troy [NY]
Tilden, Samuel Jones (1814-1886), politician [2 images]
General note
On verso #1: fm Saronys port photo
Tracy, Edward H. (d. 1875), engineer
Travers, William Riggin (1819-1887), financier
Trimble, George Thomas (1793-1872), merchant
Trimble, Merritt (1824-1903), banker
General note
On verso: "Bank for Savings" N.Y.
Vail, Henry F. (1812-1881), banker [2 images]
General note
On verso: Prest Bank of Commerce
Vail, Thomas Hubbard (1812-1889)
Vanderbilt, Cornelius II (1843-1899) [2 images]
General note
On verso #1: does not do him justice too old & severe
General note
On verso #2: not long before his attack [1896] a strong likeness
Vanderpoel, Aaron (1799-1870), judge
Warren, John (1799-1878), stockbroker
General note
On verso: Prest of Board of Brokers (Stock Exchange)
Warren, J. Kearney (d. 1895)
Washburn, Edward Abiel (1819-1881), clergyman
General note
On verso: of Calvary Church
Weir, Robert Walter (1803-1889), painter
Whipple, Henry B., Rev. (1822-1901), clergyman
General note
On verso: Bishop / He said "it looked like a Methodist parson" yet it is a tremendous likeness D.H.
White, Andrew Dickson (1832-1918), diplomat
General note
On verso: President of Cornell about 1890, minister to Germany 1899
White, Chandler (d. 1856) [from a daguerreotype]
General note
On verso: of the first Cable Syndicate This is from an old daguerreotype of the only likeness to be found of him
Whittingham, William Rollison (1805-1879), clergyman, Bishop of Maryland
General note
On verso: This is severe (as it should be) from the Daguerreotype / fine for character (but it was very hot weather & his shirt-collar showed it)! (not a bad Savonarola) D.H.
Williams, John S. (1814-1876), businessman
General note
On verso: of Williams & Guyon [Guion]
Winthrop, Robert (1832-1892), banker
General note
On verso: of New York
Winthrop, Robert Charles (1809-1894), lawyer [2 images]
General note
On verso #1: very good before he began to grow feeble
Wolfe, John David (1792-1872), merchant [2 images]
Woodruff, Lewis Bartholomew (1809-1875), judge
General note
On verso: Lewis B. US Circuit Court