Art Collection

The U.S.S. Lexington was an 86-foot, two-masted warship used by the American navy during the Revolutionary War. In response to England’s blockade of the Atlantic coast, the Continental Congress began purchasing merchant ships and turning them into warships.

In March 1776, the merchant ship Wild Duck was converted into the U.S.S. Lexington with 16 deck cannons.  With John Barry, widely known as the “father of the American navy,” as captain, and a crew of 110 sailors, the Lexington patrolled the Atlantic coastline, capturing at least five British warships. In February 1777, the Lexington was sent to harass the British in their own waters as part of a new strategy to disrupt the shipping lanes around the British Isles. Along with two other American warships, the U.S.S. Dolphin and the U.S.S. Reprisal, nine enemy ships were captured. Only a few months later, in June 1777, the Lexington’s luck ran out as she was attacked and captured by the English warship H.M.S. Alert off the coast of France.  

Lydia Thornton Harris was the maternal grandmother of the brothers William Harris Cary and Isaac Harris Cary. The Cary family’s connection with the town of Lexington is reflected in their legacy of support through Cary Memorial Library, Cary Memorial Hall, the Cary Lecture Series and the Cary Educational Fund.

George Peter Healy (1813-1894) was born in Boston, where he opened his own studio at the age of 18. He studied and worked in Paris, Chicago and Rome, where his highly realistic, academic style drew commissions and helped develop his reputation as one of the most prolific and popular portrait painters of his day, sometimes producing as many as 50 works a year. Some of his most famous portraits include those of notable figures such as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Henry Clay, King Louis Philippe of France, and U.S. presidents from John Quincy Adams to Ulysses S. Grant. Although Healy’s style of painting eventually fell out of fashion in the early twentieth century, he remained an influential figure in the art world.

Cary Memorial Library is named in honor of its benefactor, Lexington native Maria Hastings Cary. She grew up on a farm on Lincoln Street where her family had lived since the early 1700s, and both her father and grandfather served with Captain John Parker at the Battle of Lexington. After marrying William Harris Cary in 1828, the couple made their home in New York City due to William’s business as an importer. A later portrait of Maria Hastings Cary by Edgar Parker (1840-1892) also hangs in this room.

Charles E. Osgood (1809-1890) was an American artist from Salem, Massachusetts. After unsuccessfully working as a bank clerk, he moved to Boston to study painting. He would later split his time between Salem and New York City, but was most successful in his hometown. During his career as a portraitist, he painted several prominent figures including Nathaniel Hawthorne and John Quincy Adams. Examples of his work are in the collections of the Peabody Essex Museum, Harvard University and the Massachusetts Historical Society.

While Maria Hastings Cary spent much of her life in New York City, Lexington remained important to her and her husband, as the couple spent summers at the Cary homestead on Shade Street. Maria gave generously to the town, and in 1867 she made a gift of $1,000 to be spent on books with the understanding that a free library would also be established. She continued to support the library until her death and her contributions to and regard for her birthplace are reflected in the naming of the Maria Hastings Elementary School and Hastings Park and bandstand in her honor.

Edgar Parker (1840-1892) was born in Framingham, Massachusetts and was a self-taught artist. A number of his portraits hang in Faneuil Hall, including those of Charles Sumner, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Rear Admiral John A. Winslow. He is also known for his copy of Robert Weir’s painting “Embarkation of the Pilgrims,” which was commissioned by the Pilgrim Society in 1875.

William Tower, a successful merchant and banker, was born in Petersham as one of 11 children. He was a representative on the Massachusetts General Court and a member of the Governor’s Council; additionally, he served as Chief Marshall for the 1875 Centennial Celebration attended by over 100,000 people on Lexington Green and was on the first board of trustees of the Lexington Savings Bank. Tower moved to Lexington in the 1850s and constructed a large Victorian mansion overlooking Massachusetts Avenue in 1873. By the time of his death in 1904, the estate comprised 127 acres with a barn, stable, tea house, windmill and two cottages on the property.

William McGregor Paxton (1869-1941) was born in Baltimore, but moved to Boston with his family in the 1870s. He studied at Cowles Art School and the École des Beaux Arts, where he was taught by the painter Jéan-Leon Gérôme. He became an important member of the Boston School and was known for his highly polished work, characterized by an attention to detail and knowledge of the human form. Although many of his compositions depict idealized interior scenes with young women, Paxton is best known as a portraitist, including images of Grover Cleveland and Calvin Coolidge. Paxton’s work has been collected by many major museums, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The frame was sculpted by Charles E. Prendergast of New York (1868-1948). 

William Harris Cary began his career as a merchant in Boston, working with his brother Isaac Harris Cary, but they soon moved operations to New York City in order to expand the business. During the 1800s, New York was a major center of trade and the Cary brothers capitalized on this by importing and selling a wide range of items from buttons to cutlery. Upon his death in 1861, Cary’s firm was the largest importer of ‘fancy goods’ in the country. A later portrait of William Harris Cary by Edgar Parker (1840-1892) also hangs in this room.

Charles E. Osgood (1809-1890) was an American artist from Salem, Massachusetts. After unsuccessfully working as a bank clerk, he moved to Boston to study painting. He would later split his time between Salem and New York City, but was most successful in his hometown. During his career as a portraitist, he painted several prominent figures including Nathaniel Hawthorne and John Quincy Adams. Examples of his work are in the collections of the Peabody Essex Museum, Harvard University and the Massachusetts Historical Society.