American Artist: Anson Dickinson

Ambrose Dickinson (1783-1806), Brother of the Artist,
Painted Two and a Half Months before His Twentieth Birthday

American
circa 1803*
by Anson Dickinson (1779-1852)

2 x 2 1/2 inches (sight)

watercolor on ivory; housed under glass in a later (circa 1835)
leather-bound traveling case with a mat of embossed sheet brass

*Anson Dickinson kept a workbook in which he recorded his travels and commissions for the period of 1803-1851. In this workbook, he recorded that, on February 25, 1803, while in New York City, he painted miniature portraits of two of his younger brothers: Ambrose Dickinson and Raphael Dickinson. [Dearborn, Mona Leithiser (1983), "Anson Dickinson, The Celebrated Miniature Painter: 1779-1852", containing a detailed copy of the artist's workbook and list of sitters, published by the Connecticut Historical Society, Hartford, Connecticut, page 156.]

About the Portrait: When acquired for the collection, this miniature of Ambrose Dickinson was housed in a heavy wooden frame (pictured below; believed to be original to the portrait) that is in need of conservation, having suffered cracks and significant wear and tear over the years. To the reverse of the frame are notes written by descendants of the Dickinson family, both identifying the subject and providing clues as to the provenance of ownership of the portrait. As is often the case with items passed down through generations of a family, however, there are some errors in the inscriptions that had to be reconciled with thorough research.

In the inscriptions, while the subject is correctly identified as Ambrose Dickinson, son of Oliver and Anna Dickinson, he is incorrectly said to have died in 1816, at the age of 23. Ambrose Dickinson did indeed die at the age of 23, but he died in the year 1806, a decade earlier than indicated in the hand-written note.

Newspaper obituary reporting the death of Ambrose Dickinson,
who died on June 26, 1806, at the age of 23.

["The Witness", Litchfield, Connecticut, July 02, 1806 edition, Vol. I, Issue 46, page 3.]

Similarly, one of the inscriptions states that the portrait was painted by Anson Dickinson in 1814. This too is an error as, not only did the subject, Ambrose Dickinson, pass away in 1806, but there is no entry in Anson Dickinson's workbook indicating that he painted a portrait of his brother, even posthumously, in 1814. As noted above, however, Anson Dickinson did record painting a portrait of his brother Ambrose on February 25, 1803.

Lending support to the portrait dating to 1803, it is painted in a manner that is very consistent with Anson Dickinson's earliest work, before his meeting and being influenced by the work of fellow miniaturist Edward Greene Malbone (1777-1807), universally regarded as one of the finest miniature painters of his day. (Dickinson and Malbone met in July, 1804, at which point Malbone painted Dickinson's portrait.** This is said to have served as a great learning opportunity for Dickinson, who afterwards used the portrait as a guide to replicating Malone's more polished style.)

[**Johnson, Dale T. (1991). "American Portrait Miniatures in the Manney Collection", The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York, page 103.]

Other notes to the reverse of the frame refer to Ambrose Dickinson having been the uncle of L. A. Dickinson, the great grand uncle of Robert E. Blakeslee, and the grand uncle of Mary N. Blakeslee. These notations of family relationships, some of which are written in different handwriting, provide clues as to how Ambrose Dickinson's portrait was likely passed down through his family.

It is apparent, for example, considering that Ambrose Dickinson had no children of his own, that it passed down throught the family of his closest brother, Raphael Landon Dickinson. Ambrose and Raphael were only two years apart in age and likely had a very close relationship. This is perhaps best exemplified by the fact that, after Ambrose's death, Raphael named his first-born child after his late brother: little Ambrose, born in 1811. Sadly, the young Ambrose, too, lived a short life, having passed away in 1815, at the age of 4. Several years later, in 1826, in another homage to his late brother, Raphael named his last child Leonard Ambrose Dickinson (1826-1901). It is this Leonard Ambrose Dickinson who is referred to in the notes to the reverse of Ambrose's portrait, in which Ambrose is said to have been the "uncle of L. A. Dickinson".

Leonard Ambrose Dickinson and his wife had no children of their own; and one can easily surmise that, after his death in 1901, the portrait of his uncle Ambrose then passed to his only surviving sibling, Elizabeth P. Dickinson (1821-1908). It is clear that it then passed down to her first-born child, Mary Goodrich North (1844-1934; wife of Erastus Blakeslee) who, in turn, then passed it to her youngest and latest surviving child, Robert Erastus Blakeslee (1881-1965). Thus, the mention in the family notes of Ambrose Dickinson being the "grand uncle of Mary N. Blakeslee" and "great-grand uncle of Robert E. Blakeslee".

It is believed that the portrait continued to pass down through descendants of the Blakeslee family, before ultimately coming to auction in 2022.

A view of the front of the heavy wooden frame (measuring 7 x 7 1/2 inches) that Ambrose Dickinson's portrait was originally housed in. The hand-cared frame features high relief images of pears, grapes, acanthus leaves, clover blossoms and wood rose blossoms. The frame has suffered some cracks and heavy wear and tear, leaving it in a state that requires conservation. Thus, the portrait is currently housed in the leather-bound traveling case seen in the photo above.

Reverse of the frame Ambrose Dickinson's portrait was originally housed in, bearing notes written by descendants of the Dickinson family, both identifying the subject and providing clues as to the provenance of ownership of the portrait. Click (+) to see a larger image.

Other portraits in the Tormey-Holder Collection by Anson Dickinson
(click photo for larger view and additional information):

Early American Gentleman, Identified as
'M. W. Potter', Depicted in Profile View

Early Nineteenth Century American Couple
of New Haven, Connecticut

Jacksonian Era Gentleman

Early Nineteenth Century American Lady

Elderly, Early Nineteenth Century American Lady
Wearing a Ruffled Bonnet and a Dark Colored Shawl

Jacksonian Era Boy in Formal Attire