"Washington at the Battle of Trenton" Engine Panel Painting
"Washington at the Battle of Trenton" Engine Panel Painting
- Description
- In the nineteenth century, volunteer fire companies often commissioned paintings to decorate their hand-pumped fire engines for parades, competitions, and community events. Sometimes framed with elaborate carvings, they adorned the tall air chamber located at the middle or rear of a pumper. The paintings would often feature patriotic, heroic, or allegorical images to associate the volunteer companies with these lofty ideals.
- This engine panel painting is attributed to the Washington Fire Company of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that was active from 1796 until 1871. John A. Woodside completed this oil painting in 1853, copying it from John Trumbull’s George Washington Before the Battle of Trenton that was made in 1792. The painting depicts Washington surveying the battleground, with Continental troops in the background. The volunteer company named itself after Washington and commissioned the painting to link itself with Washington’s prestige America’s foremost Founding Father.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1853
- referenced
- Trumbull, John
- Washington, George
- maker
- Woodside, John Archibald
- Place Made
- United States: Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
- Physical Description
- wood (overall material)
- oil paint (image material)
- Measurements
- overall: 37 1/2 in x 26 1/2 in; 95.25 cm x 67.31 cm
- ID Number
- 2005.0233.0309
- accession number
- 2005.0233
- catalog number
- 2005.0233.0309
- Credit Line
- Gift of CIGNA Museum and Art Collection
- See more items in
- Home and Community Life: Fire Fighting and Law Enforcement
- Work
- Cultures & Communities
- Art
- Engine Panel Paintings
- Firefighting Collection
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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