Spirit of '76

1845

Tompkins H. Matteson American, 1813-1884

On View

American, Level 2, West Wing

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About the Artwork

This painting shows an emotional moment in the kitchen of a farmhouse. At the center, a young man’s family arms him as he prepares to join the American Revolution. At the lower right, his wife balances their infant child with one hand and holds a printed Declaration of Independence in the other. That broadside, dated July 4, 1776, places the scene almost seventy years before Tompkins Matteson created this artwork.

When this painting debuted in 1845, Americans debated the lessons of the Revolutionary War. To some viewers, the artwork urged patriotic devotion and sacrifice. To others, it was a reminder of the fight to cast off British imperial control at a time when, paradoxically, the United States’ territorial ambitions led toward the impending Mexican-American War (1846 – 48).

Title Spirit of '76

Artwork Date 1845

Artist Tompkins H. Matteson

Life Dates 1813-1884

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. American

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. ----------

Medium Oil on canvas

Dimensions Framed: 37 5/16 × 43 3/4 × 2 1/4 inches (94.8 × 111.1 × 5.7 cm)

Classification Paintings

Department American Art before 1950

Credit Museum Purchase, Robert H. Tannahill Foundation Fund

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 2017.59

Markings

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Provenance

American Art-Union, distributed as a prize in the annual raffle (December 19, 1845)
Daniel C. Waterman (1802-1871), New Bedford, Mass. (received from the above)
Anna Waterman Crane (daughter of the above), Pittsfield, Mass., by gift, circa 1856
Frank Lamberton Stevens, North Hoosick, New York, circa 1910
Lois Stevens MacGruer (1892-1966), North Hoosick, New York, by descent, 1941
Malcolm Stevens MacGruer (1921-2016), Greenwich, Conn., by gift, 1963
Purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA), 2017-present

For more information on provenance, please visit:

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Exhibition History

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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.

We welcome your feedback for correction and/or improvement.

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