Object ID	N0110.1955
Title	Scene from James Fenimore Cooper's "The Prairie"
Artist	Glass, James William, Jr.
Object Name	Painting
Early Date	1855
Exhibit label line3	James William Glass was born in Cadiz, Spain. He was raised in America and worked for the U.S. Coast Survey and Fortification Service. In 1844, he began his painting career and worked under Henry Inman (1801-1846) and Daniel Huntington (1816-1906), two very successful portrait painters in New York City. In the late 1840s, Glass visited Europe and achieved prominence with his equestrian portrait of Wellington, a copy of which was commissioned by Queen Victoria. Originally titled Friend or Foe, this painting depicts Leatherstocking (Cooper's frontiersman hero) at center, and two companions looking at a thin wisp of smoke rising from the trees in the distance. Unlike Cooper's other Leatherstocking tales, which are set in New York State, The Prairie is set in Western territories that Cooper never visited. The "West" of Cooper's imagination featured expansive space that Easterners could scarcely fathom.
Description	Scene from James Fenimore Cooper's "The Prairie" Marks: Monogram in red, lower right corner: JWG (superimposed) 1855
Classification	Academic Art--Painting/Drawing--Scene--Genre
Dimensions	H-39 W-59 inches
Material	Oil on canvas
Place of Origin	New York, NY

Prior written permission is required for any reproduction, redistribution, publication, or other use of the images in any media, including but not limited to, printed or electronic media. Contact the Office of the Registrar, New York State Historical Association, PO Box 800, Cooperstown, NY 13326, (607) 547-1444, to request permission.    
Last modified on: November 04, 2005