John Trumbull John Trumbull ( June 6 , 1756 – November 10 , 1843 ) was an American artist during the period of the American Revolutionary War and was notable for his historical painting s . His " Declaration of Independence " ( 1817 ) was used on the reverse of the two - dollar bill . Early years . Trumbull was born in Lebanon , Connecticut , in 1756 , to Jonathan Trumbull , who was Governor of Connecticut from 1769 to 1784 , and his wife Faith Robinson Trumbull . He entered the 1771 junior class at Harvard University at age fifteen and graduated in 1773 . Due to a childhood accident , Trumbull lost use of one eye , which may have influenced his detailed painting style . As a soldier in the American Revolutionary War , Trumbull rendered a particular service at Boston by sketching plans of the British works , and witnessed the Battle of Bunker Hill . He was appointed second personal aide to General George Washington , and in June 1776 , deputy adjutant - general to General Horatio Gates . He resigned from the army in 1777 . In 1780 he traveled to London , where he studied under Benjamin West . At his suggestion , Trumbull painted small pictures of the War of Independence and miniature portraits , of which he produced about 250 in his lifetime . On September 23 , 1780 , British agent Major John André was captured in America and was hanged as a spy on October 2 , 1780 . News reached Europe , and as an officer of similar rank as André in the Continental Army , Trumbull was imprisoned for seven months in London ' s Tothill Fields Bridewell . In 1784 he was again in London working under West , in whose studio he painted his " Battle of Bunker Hill " and " Death of General Montgomery at Quebec " . Both works are now in the Yale University Art Gallery . In 1785 Trumbull went to Paris , where he made portrait sketches of French officers for " Surrender of Lord Cornwallis " . With the assistance of Thomas Jefferson , he began " Declaration of Independence " , well - known from the engraving by Asher Brown Durand . This latter painting was purchased by the United States Congress , along with his " Surrender of General Burgoyne " , " Surrender of Lord Cornwallis " , and " Washington Resigning his Commission " . All now hang in rotunda of the United States Capitol . Allegedly because Congress only voted enough money for four paintings , only these four of Trumbull ' s paintings on the Revolution are hung there . Not hung were " Death of General Warren at Bunker Hill " ; " Death of General Montgomery at Quebec " ; " Capture of Hessians at Battle of Trenton " ; " Death of General Mercer at Battle of Princeton " . Trumbull ' s " The Sortie Made by the Garrison of Gibraltar , 1789 " , owned by the Boston Athenaeum , is now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City . While in Paris , Trumbull is credited with having introduced Thomas Jefferson to the Italian painter Maria Cosway , who would turn out to become an intimate friend of his for the rest of his life . Middle years . Trumbull sold a series of 28 paintings and 60 miniature portraits to Yale University in 1831 for an annuity of $ 1 , 000 . This is by far the largest single collection of his works . The collection was originally housed in a neoclassical art gallery designed by Trumbull on Yale ' s Old Campus , along with portraits by other artists . His portraits include full lengths of General Washington ( 1790 ) and George Clinton ( 1791 ) , in New York City Hall , where there are also full lengths of Alexander Hamilton ( 1805 , and the source of the face on the $ 10 bill ) and John Jay , and portraits of John Adams ( 1797 ) , Jonathan Trumbull , and Rufus King ( 1800 ) ; of Timothy Dwight and Stephen Van Rensselaer ( both at Yale ) , Alexander Hamilton ( in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts , both taken from Ceracchi ' s bust ) , a portrait of himself painted in 1833 , a full - length of Washington , at Charleston , South Carolina , a full length of Washington in uniform ( 1792 ) , ( now at Yale ) , and portraits of President and Mrs . Washington ( 1794 ) , in the National Museum of American History . Trumbull ' s own portrait was painted by Gilbert Stuart and by many others . In 1794 Trumbull acted as secretary to John Jay in London during the negotiation of the treaty with Great Britain , and in 1796 he was appointed by the commissioners sent by the two countries the fifth commissioner to carry out the seventh article of the treaty . Later years . Trumbull was appointed president of the American Academy of the Fine Arts , a position he held for nine years , from 1816 to 1825 , though he did not get along with the students , and his skills declined . By 1825 , his lack of support for the students led to the downfall of the Academy with the students rebelling and founding the National Academy of Design . He published an autobiography in 1841 . He died in New York City at the age of 87 on November 10 , 1843 . He was originally interred ( along with his wife ) beneath the Art Gallery at Yale University that he had designed . In 1867 , his collection and remains were moved to the newly built Street Hall . The Trumbull Gallery was later razed . The John Trumbull Birthplace in Lebanon , Connecticut , was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1965 .