Joseph Steward
Joseph Steward (July 6, 1753 – April 15, 1822) was an American minister,
Minister
Joseph Steward was born on July 6, 1753, the son of Joseph and Jane (Wilson) Steward of
Steward continued to fill in for the elder Moseley, but attempts to find him a permanent placement within the parish were prevented by his continuing poor health.[2]
Hartford years
Soon after Mariah's birth, the family moved to
He died on April 15, 1822, at the age of 69. He was survived by his wife Sarah and his daughters, Sarah and Anna. He is buried in the North Cemetery in Hartford, CT (Section F, Lot 452).
Painter
Steward was a largely self-taught artist, although he may have studied with Jonathan Trumbull in the fall of 1792, during Trumbull's brief residency in Hartford. Steward is known to have been painting portraiture on a regular basis by 1788. He did not, however, always paint from life. There are many examples of him copying other works.
In 1793, he was commissioned by Dartmouth College to create full length portraits of
Few of his works appear to be extant or available for public viewing, and many of those are only tentatively identified as his, based on style.
Museum of Natural & Other Curiosities
In June 1797, he opened a museum in his Painting Room. He regularly used newspaper advertising to solicit donations for the museum, thank contributors, and promote his displays. His collection included portraits, wax works, and other curiosities, man-made as well as natural. His natural curiosities included a dwarf cow, a two-headed calf and a "sagacious" goat.
By 1808, his collection had outgrown the space available at the Old State House, so he acquired the Talcott Mansion, built in 1725 by Governor Joseph Talcott (1724-1741) and moved his museum there. It was open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. “except the evening before and after the sabbath”. The building stood until 1900 when the property was sold by the Moseley family and the building razed.[4]
After Steward's death in 1822, the museum was relocated to 131 State Street, Hartford.
References
- ^ Harlow, Thompson R. “The Life and Trials of Joseph Steward.” The Connecticut Historical Society Bulletin 46.4 (1981): 97-164.
- ^ Larned, Ellen M. History of Windham County Connecticut 1760-1880. 1880. Ed. Leigh Grossman. Pomfret: Swordsmith Productions, 2000.
- ^ Harlow, Thompson R. “Joseph Steward and the Hartford Museum.” ‘’The Connecticut Historical Society Bulletin’’ 18.1-2 (1953): 2-16.
- ^ Harlow “The Life and Trials of Joseph Steward.”
- ^ Harlow “Joseph Steward and the Hartford Museum.”
Further reading
- French, Henry Willard. ‘’Art and Artists in Connecticut’’. Boston: Lee & Shepard, Pub. 1879.
- Harlow, Thompson R., "The versatile Joseph Steward, portrait painter and museum proprietor." ‘’The Magazine ANTIQUES’’, vol. 121, no. 1 (January 1982), pp. 303-311.
- Walker, George Leon. ‘’History of the First Church in Hartford’’. Hartford: Brown & Gross, 1884. 368.