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Finding Aid for the Hesselius Family Papers, 1780-1820s MS.11
Table of Contents
Summary Information
- Repository
- The Frick Collection/Frick Art Reference Library Archives10 East 71st Street
New York, NY, 10021
archives@frick.org
© 2010 The Frick Collection. All rights reserved. - Creator
- Hesselius family.
- Title
- Hesselius Family Papers
- ID
- MS.11
- Date
- 1780-1820s
- Extent
- 0.5 Linear feet (1 box)
- Abstract
- Correspondence and records of the descendants of painter Gustavus Hesselius. Correspondents include Hesselius' granddaughter, Elizabeth Henderson Wertmüller; her mother, Lydia Hesselius Henderson; her aunt, Mary Hesselius; and other relatives. Letters concern personal and business matters.
Preferred Citation
Hesselius Family Papers. The Frick Collection/Frick Art Reference Library Archives.
Biographical Note
Gustavus Hesselius (1682-1755), a Swedish-born painter who immigrated to America in 1711, was known for his portraits and religious paintings. His son, John Hesselius (1728-1778), was also a prominent portrait painter. Elizabeth Henderson, the granddaughter of Gustavus Hesselius and niece of John Hesselius, married Adolph Wertmüller (1751-1811), a prominent Swedish painter, in 1801, and the two settled on a farm near Wilmington, Delaware.
Scope and Content Note
This collection consists of approximately 215 letters and other material concerning the descendants of Gustavus Hesselius.
The records are primarily in the form of correspondence to Elizabeth Henderson Wertmüller, a granddaughter of Gustavus Hesselius and niece of John Hesselius, both painters. There is also incoming correspondence to Elizabeth's mother, Lydia Hesselius Henderson. Elizabeth Henderson Wertmüller's correspondents are most often her aunt, Mary Hesselius (widow of John Hesselius), and various cousins, including John Hesselius, Elizabeth Addison, Caroline Hesselius Claggett, Harriet Brice Murray, Charlotte Hesselius and Mary Hesselius (daughter-in-law of Mary Hesselius). There are also letters from suitors of Miss Henderson, correspondence received by her husband, the painter Adolph Wertmüller, and miscellaneous business and estate records for Elizabeth and Adolph Wertmüller.
The individuals cited in this material lived in Baltimore, Philadelphia, Annapolis, and on country properties in Maryland and Delaware. Subjects covered in the letters include health matters, births, deaths, travel plans, real estate matters, and other accounts of family activities. Business matters include real estate transactions and property management, and the sale of Adolph Wertmüller's paintings. There is very little here directly related to the artistic careers of John Hesselius or Adolph Wertmüller; however, the estate papers for the Wertmüllers contain an inventory of Wertmüller's paintings at the time of his death and there are letters from Genet Campan, First Maid of Marie-Antoinette, regarding the portrait Wertmüller painted of Marie-Antoinette and her two children.
Arrangement
This collection is arranged in two series:
Series I: Correspondence
Series II: Other Material
Administrative Information
Access Restrictions
These records are open for research under the conditions of The Frick Collection/Frick Art Reference Library Archives access policy. Contact the Archives Department for further information at archives@frick.org.
Provenance
Believed to be part of a larger gift of material from Anita Hart (wife of Charles Henry Hart), 1926.
Processing Information
Arranged and described by Sally Brazil, 1998; Shannon Yule, 2009.
Related Materials
Related Materials
Henderson-Wertmüller Papers, Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
Controlled Access Headings
Family Name(s)
- Hesselius family.
Genre(s)
- Correspondence.
Personal Name(s)
- Campan, Mme (Jeanne-Louise-Henriette), 1752-1822.
- Henderson, Lydia.
- Hesselius, Gustavus, 1682-1755.
- Hesselius, John, 1728-1778.
- Wertmüller, Adolph Ulric, 1751-1811.
- Wertmüller, Elizabeth.
Collection Inventory
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| Box | Folder | Date | ||
| 1 | 1 |
Addison, Elizabeth
Scope and Contents note
2 letters (cousin) |
undated | |
| 1 | 2 |
Baily, Margaret
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
undated | |
| 1 | 3 |
Booth, George
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1796 | |
| 1 | 4 |
Bryan, Mary
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1803 | |
| 1 | 5 |
Christy, William
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1794 | |
| 1 | 6 |
Claggett, Caroline (née Hesselius)
Scope and Contents note
7 letters (cousin) |
1790, undated | |
| 1 | 7 |
Clark, Sophia
Scope and Contents note
3 letters |
1811-1812 | |
| 1 | 8 |
Cooper, Jane
Scope and Contents note
3 letters |
1791, undated | |
| 1 | 9 |
Cox, Richard
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1797 | |
| 1 | 10 |
Dundas, Ann
Scope and Contents note
4 letters |
1785-1791 | |
| 1 | 11 |
Ely, John
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1800 | |
| 1 | 12 |
Gough, P.
Scope and Contents note
5 letters |
1788-1795, undated | |
| 1 | 13 |
Henderson, John
Scope and Contents note
1 letter (brother) |
1789 | |
| 1 | 14 |
Henderson, Lydia
Scope and Contents note
3 letters (mother) |
1790, 1794 | |
| 1 | 15 |
Henderson, Mary
Scope and Contents note
2 letters |
1791, 1794 | |
| 1 | 16 |
Hesselius, John
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1795 | |
| 1 | 17 |
Hesselius, Mary
Scope and Contents note
33 letters (aunt) |
1786-1799 | |
| 1 | 18 |
Hesselius, Mary
Scope and Contents note
25 letters (aunt) |
1800-1811, undated | |
| 1 | 19 |
Hesselius, Mary
Scope and Contents note
18 letters (cousin) |
1799-1811, undated | |
| 1 | 20 |
Israel, Margaretta
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1808 | |
| 1 | 21 |
Johnson, Charlotte (née Hesselius)
Scope and Contents note
5 letters (cousin) |
1784, 1792, undated | |
| 1 | 22 |
Knox, Joseph
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1797 | |
| 1 | 23 |
Marshalls, Thomas
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1800 | |
| 1 | 24 |
Murray, Harriet (née Brice)
Scope and Contents note
17 letters (cousin) |
1780-1800, undated | |
| 1 | 25 |
Nicholson, Jane
Scope and Contents note
7 letters |
1792-1798, undated | |
| 1 | 26 |
Palmer, Elihu
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1794 | |
| 1 | 27 |
Porter, Mary
Scope and Contents note
5 letters |
1793-1811 | |
| 1 | 28 |
Ramsey, E.
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1789 | |
| 1 | 29 |
Reese, Thomas
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1797 | |
| 1 | 30 |
Rogers, Rebecca
Scope and Contents note
11 letters |
1787-1800, undated | |
| 1 | 31 |
Ross, Augustina Margaretta
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
1798 | |
| 1 | 32 |
Scriba, Anna and Sarah
Scope and Contents note
5 letters |
1791-1797, undated | |
| 1 | 33 |
Shippen, Abby (née Reynolds)
Scope and Contents note
3 letters |
1799, undated | |
| 1 | 34 |
Shippen, John
Scope and Contents note
5 letters |
1798-1800 | |
| 1 | 35 |
Wood, Mary
Scope and Contents note
1 letter |
undated | |
| 1 | 36 |
Woods, Jane
Scope and Contents note
8 letters |
1791-1795 | |
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| Box | Folder | Date | ||
| 1 | 37 |
Claggett, Caroline (née Hesselius)
Scope and Contents note
3 letters (niece) |
1792, undated | |
| 1 | 38 |
Hesselius, Mary
Scope and Contents note
16 letters (sister-in-law) |
1785-1793, undated | |
| 1 | 39 |
Various correspondents
Scope and Contents note
Harriet Brice Murray (niece) Eliza Dulany Addison (niece) William Nicholson |
1787, 1793, undated | |
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| Box | Folder | Date | ||
| 1 | 40 |
Campan, Genet (Jeanne-Louise-Henriette Campan)
Scope and Contents note
Genet Campan, First Maid of Marie-Antoinette, writes Adolph Wertmuller regarding the portrait he painted of Marie-Antoinette and her two children. Letters are in French, English translations (by Edgar Munhall) are included. |
1785-1786 | |
| 1 | 41 |
Various correspondents
Scope and Contents note
Unknown, 1796 M. Hesselius, 1806 Letter of introduction for Adolph Wertmuller to Charles Loch written by N. Collin, 1803 Letter between doctors regarding Adolph Wertmuller's condition, 1811 Elizabeth Wertmuller to Amos Haymaker announcing Adolph Wertmuller's death, 1811 |
1796-1811 | |
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| Box | Folder | Date | ||
| 1 | 42 |
Business records of Adolph and Elizabeth Wertmüller
Scope and Contents note
Contains receipts, contracts, promissory notes, etc. |
1803-1810 | |
| 1 | 43 |
Estate records of Adolph and Elizabeth Wertmüller
Scope and Contents note
Includes auction records and inventories of household items including paintings and art supplies. |
1812-1820s | |
| 1 | 44 |
Power of attorney (Mary Hesselius to John Hesselius regarding real estate)
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1779 | |
| 1 | 45 |
Miscellaneous items
Scope and Contents note
Unsigned pencil sketch of man Silhouette cut-out Photograph of Elizabeth Henderson Wertmuller Envelope addressed to Charles Henry Hart 2 signatures Newspaper clippings Broadside for a museum of wax figures in Philadelphia, 1807. (removed to MS oversize box B) |
1807, undated | |
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