Object Record
Images
Metadata
Object Name |
Drawing |
Title |
S.I.M. Major II |
Catalog Number |
1953.1 [dup2] |
Creator |
Wilson, Robert Burns |
Date |
1876 |
Material(s) |
Charcoal/Paper/Canvas |
Dimensions |
H-24 W-19.75 inches |
Description |
This charcoal-over-photograph bust portrait of S.I.M. Major II was done by Robert Burns Wilson. The charcoal work which is applied to a paper is adhered to a canvas backing. The portrait depicts Major with his left should turned slightly forward, and he is looking straight ahead. He is wearing a dark suit jacket, white shirt, and a thin tie knotted in a bow. Major's hair is parted on the left side, and he has a long mustache and beard. Robert Burns Wilson's signature is in the lower right corner and reads "Robt B Wilson Pinxt 76." |
Notes |
Samuel Ire Monger (S.I.M.) Major II, was the son of Samuel Ire Monger Major I and Martha Hipkins Bohannon Major. S.I.M. Major II, who was born in 1830, married Mary Brown Scott. He became mayor of Frankfort following the Civil War, and he was a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives . He was involved in the banking industry, a local gas utility company, and a mule-drawn trolley car operation. He is best known for his career as the publisher of the Kentucky Yeoman. He ceased publishing the Kentucky Yeoman in 1885. He died in 1886. Robert Burns Wilson was born in Pennsylvania on October 30, 1850. He was a painter and poet who wrote the famous poem, "Remember the Maine." The poem was based on the based on the phrase used by newspapers leading to the Spanish-American War. However, he was best known as a nature poet. Wilson came to Kentucky in 1871 and began working in Louisville. In 1875, he moved Frankfort, where portrait commissions awaited. He lived in Frankfort for close to 30 years. Wilson made his home and studio in the Hanna House located at Second and Conway Streets. He began painting landscapes in the 1880s. In 1904, he moved to New York and remained in the East until his death in 1916. |
Collection |
Mrs. S. I. M. Major Collection |
People |
Wilson, Robert Burns Major, Samuel Ire Monger, Jr., 1830-1886 Major, Samuel Ire Monger, 1791-1855 Major, Martha Hipkins Bohannan, 1801-1874 |
Subjects |
Drawings Portrait drawings Portraits Charcoal drawings |
Search Terms |
Portraits Frankfort (Ky.) Franklin County (Ky.) |
Physical Holder |
Kentucky Historical Society - KHS |