Today marks the 150th anniversary of the capture of the President of the Confederate States, Jefferson Davis. Keenly interested in the progress of the Civil War and rejoicing at its end, York native Lewis Miller (1796-1882) recorded the scene as he imagined it. As I pointed out in previous posts
On April 9, 1865 Union General Ulysses S. Grant and Confederate General Robert E. Lee met at Wilmer McLean’s house at Appomattox Court House, Virginia. General Lee surrendered to General Grant. Even though there were some battles and skirmishes later, this date is usually accepted as the end of the
Folk artist Lewis Miller, a York native, had relatives on both sides of the Civil War. He and his brothers and sisters grew up in York, but in adulthood, three of his brothers settled in Virginia. Miller left a number of watercolor drawings depicting his view of the Civil War.
Call it providence, serendipity, fate, karma or whatever you want, but in the study of history, as with many things, it is remarkable how undiscovered resources appear at exactly the right time. Just as York County Heritage Trust came out with a new book of mostly previously unpublished drawings by
My last post listed all the artwork, mostly paintings, displayed in downtown York storefront windows during National Art Week in 1939. It caught my eye since The Parliament arts organization is promoting a similar venture, utilizing vacant display windows. I also found another Gazette and Daily article from November 1939
I enjoy looking at art wherever it is—in museums, studios and store fronts. The current project by The Parliament arts organization, displaying art in unused store fronts in downtown York sounds like a great idea. And, it was a great idea 75 years ago, as you can see by the
At least 1,800 of people made that bivalve love affair plain Sunday at York County Heritage Trust’s annual Oyster Fest. And it has been a long relationship; our proximity to the Chesapeake Bay allowed the earliest county settlers to enjoy the traditional seafood delicacy. Folk artist Lewis Miller was quite
Nearly fifty years ago the Historical Society of York County (now part of York County Heritage Trust) published a selection of Lewis Miller watercolor drawings from its collection; it was titled Lewis Miller, Sketches and Chronicles: The Reflections of a Nineteenth Century Pennsylvania German Folk Artist. A native of York,
It is always enlightening to see other people’s impressions of us. Just recently, we were pleased when the respected Travel and Leisure magazine named York to its list of America’s Greatest Main Streets, citing a turnaround and our historic architecture. George Washington is quoted as saying he wasn’t in danger
Ready for some more really cute dogs? As promised in my last post about the extremely prolific artist H. Robert Hildebrand, who specialized in dog portraits, I’ll list a few of his celebrity clients. These were listed in the brochure I found at the York County Heritage Trust Library/Archives concerning