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The history of tramp art can be understood through the folk artists who practiced the craft. Tramp-art.com |
| an old soldier made tramp art |
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"Dear Millard - Glad you received everything all OK. Now that your wife liked the frame so well, now I have a large frame that I made. Uncle Zue, Soldiers Home April 5, 1917" In 1883, concerned Virginians organized the "Robert E. Lee Soldiers Home" in Richmond, Virginia for the care of indigent Confederate Veterans. Contributions of all kinds including cotton bales, live stock, barrels of flour and $100.00 in gold from the "Grand Army" helped to renovate an old farm and construct the necessary buildings. In 1913, "Zue" (Zuinglius) Hundley (1846 - 1926) was admitted to the home for "infirmities of age." Zue, born in Virginia, served in the Confederate Army (Virginia Calvary, 36 Battalion, Company E). After the war, like many Confederate veterans, Zue traveled west spending time in California. Zue was a brick maker. Just before the Civil War most of Zue's family moved north, settling in upstate New York. Zue stayed to fight for the South. After the war he became particularly fond of his nephew, Millard Hundley, and carried on a correspondence with him. From these letters we learn that Zue made tramp art picture frames at the soldier's home and sent several to Millard as gifts. Millard, a northern N.Y. farmer learned how to make tramp art from his uncles gifts and correspondence. The craft of tramp art was popularized in a variety of ways including in this instance- through the mail! Special thanks to Albert Hundley in assisting with this research. |
| a contestant made tramp art or "chipwork" |
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In the early 1930s before the term "tramp art" was popularized, A. J. Caouette of Lewiston Maine, entered several of his chipwork creations in a contest and won fourth place and a cash award of $5.00 |
 99-134 & 99-123 |
 99-134 detail |
 99-134 detail |
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In the early 1800’s, the Pennsylvania Mennonites and Amish began forming new communities in Waterloo County, Ontario. Their religion taught to respect and offer aid to the homeless and destitute. The idea that "Mary & Joseph" were turned away from the "Inn" led to an accommodation of transients and tramps. The Joseph Schneider Haus in Kitchener, Ontario (now a museum) preserves a "bettelmannschtub" or beggar’s room--a room once used to board tramps. Fred "Fritz" Hoffman (1845-1926) left Pennsylvania around the turn of the century and wandered these Ontario, Canada communities until his death. Fred refused to work, to do farm labor, rather he made chip-carved pockets, holders and drawings as recompense for his many and various hosts. Hoffman signed the pictured pocket (97-134) "Miss Lizzie Martin" and was likely a gift to her., He enjoyed fishing in the summer and harvested Basswood for his winter projects. Fred’s work includes elements of fretwork, chip carving and the notching typical of tramp art. Note the absence of layering and the use of polychrome paint in Hoffman's work. In 1990 the Joseph Schneider Haus featured an exhibit of Hoffman's work titled; "A Great Many Tramps We Had Overnight: Fred Hoffman And The Tramp Art Tradition In Waterloo County." Hoffman's work is preserved in Canada's "Museum of Civilization" (see accession #78.556) and is covered in the Book Tramp Art One notch at a Time; Wallach / Cornish; see pages 14, 16, 78, 79. Within folk art and tramp art in particular, the work of an identified maker becomes desirable. In this instance the work of an identified tramp making tramp art becomes exceptionally rare. |
| a sailor made tramp art |
 94-179-1* |
Shortly before World War One William Papst, a German sailor jumped ship in New York harbor to come to America. This frame was made by Papst who settled near Albany. The photograph in the tramp art frame is of a German shipboard band of which Papst was a member. * Illustrated in Tramp art one notch at a time by Wallach / Cornish, page 120 |
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Arsene Coll (B 05/18/1884, D 06/1966) came to America from Pierreville, Quebec in 1900 and like 1000s of French-Canadians before him settled in Manchester, N.H.. As early as 1871, 2000 French-Canadians had come south to work in Manchester's textile industry. By 1884 the immigrant community had established their own Catholic parish with a French-Canadian priest. They kept immigrating until there were 35,000 strong, 40% of the entire population of the city. In 1922 the workers of the Amoskeag textile mill went on strike. A mill manager commented "It lasted 10 months and was the worst thing that ever happened. It was bad for the city, it's merchants, tenement owners, business in general. It destroyed the Amoskeag,s trade and the company, never recovering from the blow, kept going down until it had to close it's doors. My sympathy, however, goes to the workers for they are the ones who suffered most"* Arsene was one of the strikers and never returned to his job. Married, with 6 children, he spent these months making tramp art, including a shelf, clock case , candle sticks and a variety of wall pockets. This pocket is typical of Arsene’s work and his decorative use of rhinestones. Arsene turned to clock and watch repair working out of his home. *American Memory, Historical Collections for the National Digital Library "American Life Histories; Manuscripts from the Federal Writers project, 1936 - 1940"; #1801; "Living Lore in New England"; "The French Canadian Textile workers" by Philippe Lemay reported by Louis Pare |
| a retiree made tramp art |
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Stanislas Pichette (born 1860s, died 1920s) built this model in his old age mainly during winter months. He took 2-1/2 years to finish as he suffered stroke symptoms. Pichette visited Europe from his home in Quebec, Canada, with a trip to France, Tunisia & Italy. It has been suggested that this model was influenced by an "edifice" seen abroad. Pichette lived in Ange Gardien, a town southwest of Montreal. Pichette's tramp art model was featured in the June 1999 issue of Architectural Digest. Special thanks to Renato Tonin for helping with this research |
| a Canadian folk artist made tramp art |
 95-038 illustrated in Tramp Art one notch at a time; Wallach/Cornish, page 79 The Canadian Museum of Civilization, Ottawa- Hull, preserves a body of Sauve’s work |
Arthur Sauve, "(1896-1973), Maxville, Ontario. Sculptor. Sauve returned from World War One in poor health, and had to supplement his small pension by carving picture frames and handles for axes and hammers. This resulted in the rapid growth of his skill in carving wood at a much earlier age than most naïve artists, and he soon advanced to carving musical instruments, such as guitars, violins and mandolins. Sauve’s whirligigs include wind-driven motorcycles and bicycles with jointed-limb riders. He made several expressive crucifixes for members of his family."* *An Illustrated Companion to Canadian Folk Art by Blake McKendry; page 226; © 1999 Blake McKendry; |
 94-182 ring box (left) by Coleman illustrated in Tramp art one notch at a time by Wallach/Cornish page 72. & By Hand by Janice Eaton Kilby page 7. 99-178 ring box (right) from Madrid NY attributed to Coleman
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Willis Coleman (1876-1964)
made his wife, Alice, a ring box about 1912. The ring box remained
empty of rings, sitting on the pump organ in the Coleman's parlor, on
the farm in Colton, NY. It wasn't until the Coleman's 50th wedding
anniversary that they exchanged rings. Willis was a farmer & a
carpenter.
A twin to this ring box was recently discovered to have come from a nearby town. The second ring box was certainly made by Willis though the circumstances have been lost to time. Willis Coleman also made folk marquetry furniture. learn more |
| a dairyman made tramp art |
 91-1000 72"H x 36 1/2"W x 18"D illustrated in Tramp art one notch at a time by Wallach / Cornish, page 52 & By Hand by Janice Eaton Kilby, page 76
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Erastus Hanor of Cherry / South Valley NY, made this dresser/ washstand about 1910. Several examples of Hanor's work are known to exist including a similar dresser. Hanor collected cigar boxes from his customers on his dairy route as well as empty milk bottles. This dresser required 500+ cigar boxes Reunited! In 1991 at a "Lettis Auction" (Oneonta, NY), a collection of tramp art made by Erastus Hanor was sold. Among the pieces was a tramp art box that always stood on the tramp art dresser in the Hanor's home. The dresser box and the dresser were sold to separate bidders. These two pieces were reunited in 2001, a decade after their separation. |
| a sailor on a lightship made tramp art |
 96-210 tramp art wall pocket by S. J. Williams; illustrated in Tramp art one notch at a time by Wallach / Cornish p. 139
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Eight miles off Assatague Island, Maryland lies a dangerous shoal called Winter Quarter. In 1888, "Lightship #45" was positioned at this hazard as a navigational aid for costal shipping. Lightship #45 was built in 1887. It was a two masted schooner, 124'6" long x 27'6' beam x 12' draft and was a floating lighthouse. Sailors operated a steam whistle, a bell for fog signals and a light beacon composed of two lanterns (each lantern had 8 oil lamps). The lanterns were positioned 45 feet atop the mast. Turn- of- the- century lightships were notorious for rough rides in rough seas. Crews spent four months at sea, four months ashore and then repeated the cycle. A lightship could be a place of boredom in calm seas and dangerous in a blow. #45 broke her moorings several times during storms and had to be rescued. In 1903 a schooner collided with #45. S. J. Williams was a crew member of Lightship #45 when he made this tramp art wall pocket. The back of this pocket is signed "by S. J .Williams, Winter Quarter L. V., 45, 1902". Sailors on sister lightships off Nantucket, in their idle hours, practiced basket weaving. These baskets are now popular and rare collectables. Several wall pockets in the Williams' style are known to exist. Are these pockets unique to #45? In 1908, #45 was severely damaged in a gale and was then stationed in the calmer waters of "35 Foot Shoal" off Virginia. In 1918, damaged in a shipyard fire, #45 was condemned. Special thanks goes to THE US COAST GUARD HISTORIAN'S OFFICE, Washington DC in helping with this research. |
| an immigrant from Holland made tramp art |
 Dick Baker*
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In the late 1800's,
Dick Lenard Baker
(1877 - 1960) left his family and birthplace of Leeuwarden, Netherlands, for the
promise of a better life in America. Trained as a "fancy baker" and
faced by a lack of opportunities in Holland, Dick eventually found a job in
Kansas, working for a telegraph company. It was here that he made his one and
only piece of tramp art, a ditty or jewelry box decoupage with postage stamps.
Shortly thereafter, Dick journeyed back to Holland, only to turnaround and return to America
at the start of World War I with his fiancé. The Bakers settled in
Brooklyn NY where Dick opened several bakeries.
*photograph courtesy of David & Helen Baker |
| who made tramp
art? click on below links to learn more
A father made tramp art - his son continues the tradition A champion whittler made Crown of Thorns |
