Works on View
Butterfield Farm in Pompey, New York
Sanford Thayer, Oil on Canvas
On loan from the Onondaga Historical Association
Butterfield Farm was located two miles east of Pompey Hill. It was owned by Dr. Edward F. Butterfield of Syracuse who advertised himself as a “Clairvoyant Physician” and traveled throughout New York State. Dr. Butterfield commissioned the painting from the artist.
About the Artist: Sanford Thayer (1820 – 1880) started his career at age 17 by painting the backs of sleighs for a wagon shop in Skaneateles. It was there he met and became a friend of artist Charles Loring Elliott. Thayer became well known for painting portraits and Adirondack landscapes.
Lackawanna Railroad Station, Syracuse, New York
Wilfred John Addison, Oil on Canvas, 1942
On loan from the Onondaga Historical Association
The station for the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad was built in 1877 and was demolished in 1940. The painting depicts the station shortly before its removal. A new station was built on the same site.
About the Artist: Wilfred John Addison (1890 – 1969) was a painter, illustrator, and printmaker. He studied at the Art Students League and the National Academy of Design. He later lived in Syracuse where he served as the Art Director for Crouse Hinds Company for 21 years.
Old & New on East Seneca Turnpike in 1903
George K. Knapp, Oil on Canvas, 1871
On loan from the Onondaga Historical Association
The Seneca Turnpike was a toll road that ran from Utica to Canandaigua. Construction began in 1800 and most of the original route is still in use today.
About the Artist: George K. Knapp (1833-1910) was a painter in the Finger Lakes area in the 19th and 20th centuries. He was a banknote engraver in the 1850s and later made a reputation as a portrait painter.
Onondaga Valley
Albert Leighton Rawson, Oil on Canvas, 1859
On loan from the Onondaga Historical Association
By the late 18th century, the Onondaga Native Americans had relocated from the hills south of Syracuse to what is now The Valley area on the southern reached of Syracuse. This fertile spot also drew some of the first European settlers during the 1790s, since much of what is now downtown Syracuse and the shore of Onondaga Lake was swampland.
About the Artist: Albert Leighton Rawson traveled extensively throughout the United States, Central America, and Middle and Far East. In addition t painting, he wrote books on the history of world religions, languages, and archeology, and provided illustrations and maps to magazines and other authors. Rawson lives in New York City at the time of his death.
Owasco Inlet
Florence Walker, Oil on Canvas, 1962
On loan from the Cayuga-Owasco Lake Historical Society
The Owasco Inlet is a major tributary of Owasco Lake that begins in the hamlet of Peruville and flows northward for 24 miles.
About the Artist: Florence Walker (1883–1974) Walker was born in Moravia, NY where she spent most of her life.