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Mayors of the Olden Time

Mayors of the Olden Time
Artist
Alexander Gardner, 17 Oct 1821 - 10 Dec 1882
Sitter
Roger Chew Weightman, 15 Jun 1787 - 02 Feb 1876
William Winston Seaton, 11 Jan 1785 - 16 Jun 1866
Peter Force, 26 Nov 1790 - 23 Jan 1868
Date
1865
Type
Photograph
Medium
Albumen silver print
Dimensions
Image/Sheet: 46.4 × 37 cm (18 1/4 × 14 9/16")
Mount: 56.8 × 40.9 cm (22 3/8 × 16 1/8")
Mat: 71.1 × 55.9 cm (28 × 22")
Topic
Interior
Home Furnishings\Furniture\Seating\Chair
Printed Material\Book
Costume\Dress Accessory\Handkerchief
Personal Attribute\Facial Hair\Beard
Home Furnishings\Furniture\Carpet
Equipment\Chain
Costume\Dress Accessory\Neckwear\Tie\Necktie
Personal Attribute\Facial Hair\Muttonchops
Roger Chew Weightman: Male
Roger Chew Weightman: Military and Intelligence\Soldier
Roger Chew Weightman: Business and Finance\Businessperson\Merchant
Roger Chew Weightman: Politics and Government\Public official\Mayor
Peter Force: Male
Peter Force: Literature\Publisher
Peter Force: Journalism and Media\Newspaper publisher
Peter Force: Education and Scholarship\Scholar\Historian
Peter Force: Politics and Government\Public official\Mayor\Washington, DC
Peter Force: Education and Scholarship\Scholar\Archivist
William Winston Seaton: Male
William Winston Seaton: Journalism and Media\Newspaper editor
William Winston Seaton: Journalism and Media\Journalist\Reporter
William Winston Seaton: Military and Intelligence\Militia\Officer
William Winston Seaton: Politics and Government\Public official\Mayor\Washington, DC
William Winston Seaton: Education and Scholarship\Administrator\Smithsonian Institution\Treasurer of Smithsonian Institution
Portrait
Place
United States\District of Columbia\Washington
Credit Line
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
Restrictions & Rights
CC0
Object number
NPG.87.69
Exhibition Label
The title of this portrait of three former mayors of Washington, D.C., has an odd ring to it. “The Olden Time” is archaic and gives a sense of remote distance, even though all three men were relatively recent office-holders and were still alive. What Alexander Gardner meant is that they were mayors before the war came and changed everything: the war was a bright dividing line that separated even recent history from the present. From left to right are Roger Chew Weightman (1787–1876), mayor from 1824 to 1827; William Winston Seaton (1785–1866), mayor from 1840 to 1850; and Peter Force (1790–1868), mayor from 1836 to 1840. All three men were also journalists and publishers at various points in their careers.
Data Source
National Portrait Gallery
Location
Currently not on view