Charter Oak
PainterPainted by
Charles De Wolf Brownell
(American, 1822 - 1909)
Original OwnerOriginally owned by
Leverett Brainard
(American, 1843 - 1902)
Date1857
MediumPainting; oil on canvas in gilt wood frame
DimensionsStretcher (height x width): 29 x 36in. (73.7 x 91.4cm)
Frame (height x width x depth): 33 x 40 x 1 3/4in. (83.8 x 101.6 x 4.4cm)
ClassificationsPainting
Credit LineGift of Newton C. Brainard
Object number1956.1.1
DescriptionLandscape painting, view of the Charter Oak, a large oak tree with summer foliage, a white picket fence on the left, and a woman and a man in the middle foreground. There are buildings in the background, also part of the Connecticut River is visible, along with the blue dome of the Colt Factory building, and a smokestack.
Label TextThe legend of the Charter Oak is one of the defining stories in Connecticut history. Connecticut's 1662 royal charter gave the colony a semblance of independence, which later prompted such concern in England that, in 1687, armed royal agents were dispatched to confiscate the document. As the tale goes, Connecticut patriots spirited the document from under the noses of the British and hid it in the hollow of a large oak tree, which came to be called the "Charter Oak." Though the ancient tree was felled in a violent squall in August 1856, its image and spirit lives on in a wide variety of portraits and commemorative relics.
NotesObject Note: The Connecticut Historical Society's version of Brownell's Charter Oak is the only one with people standing on the grass by the tree.Status
On view
late 19th century
