Benjamin West selected papers from the Historical Society of Pennsylvania
name: label: Creator
content: West, Benjamin, 1738-1820
label: Names
content: Copley, John Singleton, 1738-1815
label: Names
content: Dillwyn, George, 1738-1820
label: Names
content: Galt, John, 1779-1839
label: Names
content: Lawrence, Thomas, Sir, 1769-1830
label: Names
content: Northcote, James, 1746-1831
label: Names
content: Smith, Anne M. H.
label: Names
content: West, Elizabeth Shewell
topic: label: Occupation
content: Painters -- United States
label: Topic
content: Expatriate painters -- England
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Material on reel P25 microfilmed by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania for the Archives of American Art, 1955. Material on reel 4560 lent for microfilming in 1991 by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania as part of AAA's Philadelphia Arts Documentation Project. [Account book and one sketchbook are filmed on both reels].
creator: label: Creator
content: West, Benjamin, 1738-1820
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Painter. Born in Pennsylvania, moved to London, where his studio became a center for expatriate Americans.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 5 Items (partial microfilm reels)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1755-1819
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.westbenj3
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Sketchbooks
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: 35mm microfilm reels P20, P23-P25 & 4560 available for use at Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Sketchbooks
originalsloc: label: Existence and Location of Originals
content: Originals in: Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: REEL P20 (fr.679): Memorandum by Anne M. Smith, 1855 Mar. 27, concerning Benjamin West's "Death of Socrates" and "View of Conestoga Creek."
label: Scope and Contents
content: REEL P23 (fr. 85, 108-157, 218-233): Portrait of West engraved by H. Meyer (?), from an original by T. Lawrence for the British Gathering of Contemporary Portraits, published by T. Cadell and W. Lavier, London, April 15, 1815; estate papers, 1814-1819, relating to Hannah West; card of admission for Mrs. Holland to see "Elgin Marbles" at Burlington House, May 1814; letters from West to George Dillwyn, John Singleton Copley, Peter Thomson, George William West, Mr. Rawle, Joseph Wharton, James Northcote, Sarah Robeson, and to the American Academy of the Fine Arts, about his portrait of Sir Thomas Lawrence, undated and 1772-1819; a letter to Mrs. West from Henry Sulger, Aug. 15, 1774, about West's picture of Christ; and an extract of a letter from Elizabeth West to Dr. Edwards, Jan. 7, 1798, reporting the death of her nephew.
label: Scope and Contents
content: REEL P24 (fr.34-38) : Biographical sketches of West, circa 1805, from the Historical Society of Pennsylvania's "Quaker Scrapbook," v. 2.
label: Scope and Contents
content: REELS P24 (fr. 527-627) & P25 (fr. 465-541): Correspondence, speeches, financial statements, catalogs, etc., of Benjamin West, 1788-1819, compiled by John Galt for his volume on "The Life, Studies, and Works of Benjamin West, Esq.", published in 1820.
label: Scope and Contents
content: REEL P25: Sketchbooks, 1790-1807; travelling expenses, 1807; account books and financial papers, 1790-1804 and 1810-1811; and a list of subscribers to the print of "The Death of Lord Nelson."
label: Scope and Contents
content: REEL 4560: Papers relating to West from HSP's Gilpin Collection (Collection (#704), including an account book with London Banker, 1790-1804, and 1810-1811; and a sketchbook and loose drawings, 1755-1819.