Companionship with animals ties humans together throughout time. Many of the people who lived and worked at our historic sites had pets who brought them friendship and joy. In our historic collections, we have paintings and photographs of these beloved pets.  How do you capture your furry or feathered friends?

Jolly Pets at John Jay Homestead

This portrait of Eleanor Kingsland Field with her pet Italian greyhound was painted in Rome when she was around fourteen years old. Eleanor’s family traveled to Italy frequently during her childhood and this portrait was commissioned during one of her trips. There is a long art history tradition of subjects being painted with their animals. In adulthood, Eleanor married John Jay II, grandson of the famous first Supreme Court Justice, and lived in the family home in Katonah that is now John Jay Homestead State Historic Site.

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Olana’s Animal Companions

Frederic E. Church and his family lived at Olana State Historic Site outside of Hudson. They had many pets at the family estate, including dogs, a donkey and likely some goldfish. Two large goldfish bowls have survived in the site’s collection. Though this painting is of a goldfish pond, it is believed that Church painted one of the family goldfish from the bowl and created the natural environment around the fish. The painting now hangs in the corridor at Olana’s main house leading to Church’s studio. The family was also pictured with many of their dogs, both inside and outside the house.

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Lorenzo’s Furry Friends

The collection at Lorenzo State Historic Site in Cazenovia also has mementos of cherished pets. Mickey was the dog of Carver Remington, the brother of Eliphelet Remington, one of the owners of Lorenzo in the 20^th century. There is a lovely formal portrait of Mickey in profile, painted by central New York artist Dwight Williams.

There are also informal renderings of family pets, like this drawing of Carlo. He was the pet of Ledyard Lincklaen, owner of Lorenzo from 1847 until his death in 1864. Carlo is a Newfoundland and shepherd mix. This rendering was done on April 27, 1856. We know Carlo’s breed because he was lost and Lincklaen placed an ad in the Cazenovia Republican offering “a suitable reward paid for his recover.” Thankfully, Carlo was recovered since the drawing adds “Obit April ? 1860,” marking the date of Carlo’s death.

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Clermont’s Cherished Childhood Pets

Janet and Honoria Livingston grew up at Clermont State Historic Site in Germantown, one of the Livingston ancestral homes. Their early 20^th century childhood was captured in many family photo albums (as seen in a recent blog post on historic costumes). Their pets were frequently included. Their English bloodhound, Rufus, was especially treasured, and features in many photographs. The family also had horses, a pony, rabbits and a peacock named Solomon.

— Written and developed by Amanda Massie, Senior Curator, Bureau of Historic Sites