The St. Louis Mercantile LibraryAn Early Haven for Art in St. Louis
The following is a short-name list of artists who passed through St. Louis when the Library was young, on their way to immortality in depicting the story of Western America:
Sources – City Directories, the Mercantile Library’s special files, and the writings of John Francis McDermott and others; dates reflect times by which listed artists flourished in the city. Often, only the last name is given in an ad, a notice, a letter. The list is a tantalizing reminder of St. Louis as an art center and hopefully will serve as an opportunity for further research.
1796: Joseph Warin
1809 : Christopher F. Schewe
1812 : Francis M. Guyol
1819 : John Vos
1820 : John J. Douberman, Chester Harding, James O. Lewis, Jeremiah Paul
1826 : Charles Alexandre LeSueur
1828 : Basil Hall
1829 : Peter Rindisbacher, James G. Sawkins
1830 : Antonio Mondelli
1831 : A. Nickell
1832 : George Catlin, Leon Pomarede
1833 : Karl Bodmer
1834 : Barker, H.G. Fette, B.W. Jenks
1835 : George Caleb Bingham
1836 : William R. Herve, G. Markham, M.E. Mynerts, Charles Soule
1837 : Mary H. Mauro, Daniel Steele, Mrs. Daniel Steele
1838 : J. Phillip Gerke, Paul Kane, T.H. Stevenson
1839 : J. Atwood, E.M. Clifford, Marchant, Martin
1840 : John Banvard, H. Bridport, Charles Deas, Nicolas Point, J.C. Wild
1841 : Charles E. Bowes, Bromie, Fronpuffer, Hicke,Mrs. H.L Hoffman, C.R. Parker, John R. Smith, Mrs. Charles Thomas, Trego, Vansnith
1842 : Bremmer, Debolle, Emmanuel J. DeFranca, C. Freligh, Mrs. E. Holden, S. Wise
1843 : John J. Audobon, William C. Cooper, P. Ord
1844 : A. Andrews, C. Mayer
1845 : C. Carpenter, James Carson, Thomas B. Harris, Henry Lewis, Sam Stockwell, James F. Wilkins
1846 : Sarah Peale, W.R. Simpson
1847 : W.P. Cowperthwaite, Donnell, Freeman, F. Kurz, John Lee, Stout, Miss F. Sweeney
1848 : Herman D. Canfield, Seth Eastman, Shelton S. Fogus, Mrs. Merrick, L. Waite, A.S. Waugh, Wilgus
1849 : G.I. Barnett, F.T. Boyle, James Sidney Brown, W. Coggswell, A.J. Conant, T.W. Dodge, George C. Eichbaum, Peter Grummen, Matt Hastings, C. Hoffman, Henry C. Isaacs, Edward Kern, Lamasson, Mayer, Murdock, J.R. Meeker, Alfred J. Miller, G. Mueller, Thomas S. Noble, L. Patniel, Fred. Piercy, Powers, John Reid, E. Robyn, Paulus Roetter, Louis Schultze, Seymour, J.M. Stanley, Mme. Subit, Van Name
1850 : George St. P. Brewer, P. Dreesbach, Fasel, Charles Wimar
1851 : Bauer, Heade, Frank B. Mayer, Charles Rogers, T.B. Thorpe
American Frontier Life: Early Western Paintings and Prints. New York: Abbeville, 1987.
Art and the Excited Spirit: America in the Romantic Period. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Museum of Art, 1972.
Judith A. Barter and Lynn E. Springer. Currents of Expansion: Paintings in the Midwest, 1820-1940. St. Louis Art Museum, 1977.
Engravings and Lithographs for a Mississippi River Metropolis. Columbia: University of Missouri, 1989.
Elizabeth Johns. American Genre Painting: the Politics of Everyday Life. New Haven: Yale, 1991.
Nancy Rash. The Painting and Politics of George Caleb Bingham. New Haven: Yale, 1991.
Perry Rathbone, ed. Westward the Way; the Character and Development of the Louisiana Territory as Seen by Artists and Writers of the Nineteenth Century. St. Louis: City Art Museum, 1954.
