Object Record
Images
Metadata
Object |
Painting |
Title |
Prisoners taken at Bennington Battle, August 16, 1777 |
Artist/Creator |
Williams, Leroy |
Date |
1938 |
Description |
Large painted mural on canvas, "Prisoners taken at Bennington Battle, August 16, 1777". Painted by Leroy Williams. First Bennington Meeting house and Walloomsac Inn in background. John Stark, Seth Warner and Herrick on horseback near center, group of Native Americans behind them. British and Hessian prisoners and American soldiers in foreground. Black man on horseback on right leading Tory prisoners with ropes around their necks. Onlookers on either side including men, women, and children. |
Height (inches) |
72.000 |
Length (inches) |
144.000 |
Subjects |
Bennington, Battle of, N.Y., 1777 |
Information |
As part of President Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration, artists were hired throughout the country to complete artwork for public appreciation and education. The Bennington Museum was one of the beneficiaries, employing artists like Leroy Williams of Chester, Vermont, during the Great Depression. The subjects of the paintings were researched in great depth by both the artist and museum staff to ensure historical accuracy. Some of the clothing we now know to be inaccurate, such as the uniform of the loyalist troops (they didn't have one) and the bonnets on the ladies. Overall, the mural shows the truly diverse, international nature of the American Revolution and its impact on the little town of Bennington. |
Related People |
Williams, Leroy |
Credit line |
Museum Purchase with contributions from the Works Progress Administration (WPA), Vermont Federal Art Project (FAP) |
Catalog Number |
A2048 |