Seascape with an American Steam-and-sail off the Delaware Coast
Alexander Charles Stuart, Scottish-American, (1831-1898).
Oil on canvas, late 19th Century
A three-masted American steam-and-sail warship lies offshore in a hazy, atmospheric seascape, with steam vessels visible along the Delaware coast. The draw of this painting is that it captures a moment in American history when the industrial age was at its infancy, and older frigates were being refitted with steam engines in order to keep up with the newly-emerging technology that was beginning to change the world.
Alexander Charles Stuart
Stuart specialized in marine subjects, particularly ships and coastal scenes. Born in Scotland, he was educated in Glasgow, and subsequently went to sea and had experience with the British Royal Navy before coming to the United States. By 1860 he was in American and was listed as an artist in New York directoreis. During the Civil War, he served in the United States Navy from 1863-1866. He served aboard Union vessels, including the light-draft monitor USS Yazoo. After his military service, he settled in the Delaware River region, and become a draftsman and artist for Harlan & Hollingsworth, shipbuilders of Wilmington, Delaware. He produced paintings documenting vessels constructed by the firm.