Miniature of William Ashe Alston (1813-1842), (painting).

Miniature of William Ashe Alston (1813-1842), (painting).

Fraser, Charles, 1782-1860, painter. (attributed to)

Miniature of William Ashe Alston (1813-1842), (painting).

Digital Reference:

Watercolor on ivory.

Portrait male -- Alston, William Ashe -- Bust

Restricted Owner.

Formerly in the collection of Alston, William Ashe, family of,

White, Miles, Jr., Mrs., Baltimore, Maryland until 1955.

Henry Ford Museum, Dearborn, Michigan 1955-ca. 2010.

The miniature was deaccessioned from the Henry Ford Museum ca. 2010; former accession number: 65.73.35. The miniature was exhibited at the Carolina Art Association, Gibbes Memorial Art Gallery in Charleston, South Carolina, Jan. 29-Feb. 26, 1934. The miniature is documented in the Frick Art Reference Library as the work of artist Charles Fraser. William Ashe Alston (1813-1842) was born at Rose Hill Plantation, Waccamaw Neck, Georgetown County, South Carolina. Born to one of South Carolina’s most prosperous planter families, the sitter appears to be approximately 16 years of age, wearing an overcoat indicative of military service. It's possible that the coat is from the Citadel academy, in Charleston, or possibly the Georgetown County Militia, in which the young man most likely served. The sitter was the son of William Algeron Alston, head of the largest of the Georgetown rice-planting families. William Algernon Alston acquired considerable property in the early nineteenth century, including thousands of acres at the Rose Hill plantation in 1803, and the adjoining Mackie estate in 1804. In the prior generation, the sitter’s grandfather, Captain William Alston (1756-1839) owned The Oaks Plantation on Pawleys Island and he was thought to be the largest owner of enslaved individuals in South Carolina.

The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

Control Number:

Horizon Information Portal 3.25_9382

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