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1856 Sturtevant and Bufford View of Vineyard Haven, Martha's Vineyard
VineyardHavenHolmesHole-bufford-1856Some print connoisseurs believe that it was only with the advent of the full-blown city-view lithograph that American printmaking reached its first plateau of originality, making a historical contribution to the graphic arts. They cite the differences between the European city-view prints and the expansive American version that reflects a new land and a new attitude toward the land.The vogue for bird's-eye city views lasted from about 1845 to 1920, during which period some 2,400 cities were thus portrayed, some multiple times. Although views were produced in many urban centers, the nexus of view production in the United States was Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The major American viewmakers were Stoner, Wellge, Bailey, Fowler, Hill Ruger, Koch, Burleigh, Norris, and Morse, among others.
William Henry Sturtevant (1823 - December 19, 1897) was a Congregational minister, political activist, and artist based in Massachusetts. Sturtevant was born in Barnstable and studied for the ministry in New Bedford. He was ordained Minister of the Holmes' Hole (Vineyard Haven, Martha's Vineyard) Congregational Church in 1852. The church was generally in decline and so Sturtevant was dismissed from the position in 1856. He relocated to South Dennis in the same year, taking a position in the Congregational Church there, where he remained until 1860. Afterwards, he returned to Martha's Vineyard, where he became the minister of a church in West Tisbury. He remained in this position until 1877, when some sort of upheaving in the church forced him out. Sturtevant moved to Tiverton, Rhode Island, where he remained as pastor of the Pawtuxet Congregational Church until his death in 1890. More by this mapmaker...
John Henry Bufford (July 27, 1810 - October 8, 1870) was a Boston based lithographer and printer. Bufford was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. He apprenticed as an artist and lithographer at Pendleton Lithography (1825 - 1836) of Boston. In 1835 he relocated to New York where he took independent commissions from George Endicott and Nathaniel Currier, among others. Returning to his hometown of Boston in 1839, he took a position of chief artist with the firm of Benjamin W. Thayer, heir to Pendleton Lithography. He probably married Thayer's sister, Anna Melora Tufts Thayer (1808-1878). Bufford has been highly criticized as an engraver, with one historian, David Tatham, stating he had 'a mediocre sort of craftsmanship at best' and 'no very special skills as an original artist.' We, however, find no justification for this harsh criticism. Instead Bufford gravitated toward business and management. By 1844 Thayer's shop was renamed J. H. Bufford and Company. The firm specialized in decorative sheet music, panoramic views, illustrations for books, retractions of paintings, and commercial printing. Bufford is credited with being one of the first employers and mentors of the important artist and engraver Winslow Homer. Bufford died in 1870, passing on the business to his sons Frank G. Bufford and John Henry Bufford Jr. These young men, operating under the imprint of 'J.H. Bufford's Sons, Manufacturing Publishers of Novelties in Fine Arts', expanded the firm with offices in New York and Chicago. A possibly related lithographic printing firm named Bufford Chandler was incorporated in Boston in 1893. It later relocated to Concord, New Hampshire but closed in 1925 when its state business charter was repealed. Learn More...
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This copy is copyright protected.
Copyright © 2024 Geographicus Rare Antique Maps