RSW's Diary Comments

Snowing Outside, 1936

"Painted in 1936. A studio window picture done in April at the window corner over my desk. One of my favorite window pictures. Exhibited at Boston Art Club, (with excellent press review.) and elsewhere and finally bought (I think the fall of '36) ---along with Snowing Outside, from the steps of the Exhibition Hall at Manchester, Vt. as it was being carried into the show (!) by Mrs. P.H. B. Frelinghuysen of Morristown NJ."

Editor's Note:

In 2013, we knew of only 9 paintings purchased by Mrs. P.H.B. Frelinghuysen. It took us many years and a lot of work to learn her name is Adaline Havemeyer Frelinghuysen the daughter of sugar magnet Henry Havemeyer, and sister of the Shelburne (VT) Museum, Electra Havemeyer Webb. We learned her name in the New York Times wedding announcement for Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his bride Elanor to which Adaline served as a bridesmaid. We had a similar issue finding the name of another patron of Woodward, Mrs. Josephine Pettingill Everett, but we feel it important to give them the due they deserve.

A pastel portrait of Adaline
Havemeyer by Mary Cassatt - 1890s.

There are a number of Cassatt's and
Dugas' work at the Shelburne Mus-
eum founded by her sister Electra.

A few years ago her grandson, former Congressman from New Jersey, Rodney Frelinghuysen, contacted us to commend us for our profile on his grandmother and has since put us in touch with other members of the family and extended family who were in possession of paintings and Mrs. Frelinghuysen's painting count is now well over 30! The Congressman does not own a painting himself and so we can mention him and thank him so very much for his gracious and generous help.

Given the number of paintings we have now learned of, Mrs. Frelinghuysen is by far Woodward's best customer. There really is no second place. She has bought more paintings than collectors # two, three, and four combined. Many of them through private sale were it appears RSW custom made the painting just for her and her beloved Manchester, Vermont.

Adaline had a special fondness for pastel which make up a majority of her purchases from Woodward. We believe this has a lot to do with famous American artist in France, Mary Cassatt, friend of another well know artist who also appreciated pastel Edgar Dugas. Cassatt was a close family friend, especially to Adaline's mother, Louisine. It is also why we had no record of the sales. RSW did not keep a record of his pastels. Still, Adaline bought twice as many oils as the other collectors.

Woodward sitting in the passenger seat of his
1936 Packard Pheaton Super8 with a young Dr. Mark
and close friend Ethal Dow looking on.

A Recollection from Dr. Mark:

"It was a proud teenager who in those days drove the big Packard phaeton up to Manchester each year to deliver several RSW paintings to the exhibition. On two different occasions when the 'summer people' saw the big car arrive they lined up along the walk into the hall to watch me carry paintings in. Twice it happened that someone in the line called out 'I want to buy that one, mark it PAID.' This painting was one of those occasions. So, as soon as I had it hung in its assigned place on the wall I put up a sign 'Purchased, not for sale.' On this occasion the lady also purchased Snowing Outside as well."

Boston Evening Transcript, Magazine Section, Feb. 29, 1939, by William Germain Dooley

"....it must be said that his single canvas in this show The Geranium and the Mountain, brings his clear cut qualities forcibly to the fore. No New England artist has become a more brilliant realist in his interpretation of the provincial regions. This window view, however, is a sheer bit of bright sunny, unaffected, painting, with clarity even in the depth of color. It is a capstone to his remarkable progress

This painting is no longer in the family and for privacy reasons we are no longer naming Mrs. Frelinghuysen has the buyer of a particular painting if it in still owned by someone in the family.