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2000.175.22  © 2001The Connecticut Historical Society.
The Old Leather Man, Middletown
2000.175.22 © 2001The Connecticut Historical Society.

The Old Leather Man, Middletown

SubjectPortrait of Leatherman French, 1832 - 1889
Datebefore 1889
MediumPhotography; albumen print on paper on paper on cardboard mount
DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (overall height x width): 6 5/16 x 3 15/16in. (16 x 10cm)
ClassificationsGraphics
DescriptionPortrait of a man dressed in patched leather shirt, trousers, boots, cloak and hat. He leans on a staff. A bag made of leather or cloth is beside him on the ground. A vertical-boarded wall, possibly of a barn or shed, is in the background.
Object number2000.175.22
InscribedOn verso: "Found dead in a cave / Mount Pleasant / near Sing Sing N.Y. / Sunday March 24 / 1889 / the Old Leather Man." "The leather bag carried by him was presented to the [Connecticut Historical] Society."

NotesSubject Note: The homeless tramp known as the old Leatherman wandered a circuit between the Connecticut River and the Hudson River from 1858 to 1889.
Subject Terms
    On View
    Not on view
    Museum purchase, 1951.11.0  © 2001The Connecticut Historical Society.
    Unknown
    before 1889
    Connecticut Historical Society collection, 2000.211.8  © 2001 The Connecticut Historical Societ…
    George W. Bartholomew
    before 1889
    The Old Oaken Bucket.
    Frederick Styles Agate
    1850-1851
    The Farmers Nooning.
    Kellogg & Bulkeley
    after 1867
    The Shoemakers.
    E.B. & E.C. Kellogg
    1855-1856
    Trial by Battle.
    E.B. & E.C. Kellogg
    1840-1844
    2003.12.0
    Frederick J. Moore
    1884-1889
    R.F.D.
    Martin Lewis
    1933
    Home and Friends.
    Kelloggs & Comstock
    1850