To John Jay from Richard Varick, 13 July 1801
From Richard Varick
[New York July 13th. 1801.]
Sir
I have the Honor to inform You That the Common Council of this City have this day Resolved that You be requested to permit Your Portrait to be taken and placed in the City Hall as a public Testimonial of their great personal Respect and high Regard for Your distinguished Patriotism and eminent public Services.
They have done me the Honor of being the Organ of this, to me, pleasing Communication and of requesting You to gratify their Wishes on this Subject—
Measures will be taken to procure a competent Artist to execute the Work of which You will be duly informed.1 I have the Honor to be with great personal Respect Sir Your most Obed’t Servant,
Rich. Varick
John Jay Esquire late Governor of the State of New York.
LS, NNC (EJ: 09306).
1. On 13 July, the Common Council of New York City resolved that a portrait of JJ should be commissioned and placed in City Hall: “Resolved that John Jay Esquire be requested to permit his Portrait to be taken and placed in the City Hall as a public Testimonial of the great personal Respect and high Regard this Board entertain of his distinguished Patriotism and eminent public Services.”
The Common Council recorded JJ’s acceptance to its request: “A Letter from Govr Jay in answer to that written to him by Mr Mayor requesting him to permit his Portrait to be taken & placed in the City Hall was read & the Al[derma]n of the 1st 2nd & 3d Wards were appointed a committee to take order for providing & agreeing with a competent Artist to perform the Work.”
John B. Coles, a local alderman, wrote to JJ in February 1802, informing him that Gilbert Stuart of Philadelphia had been contacted about undertaking the commission. However, Stuart’s arrival in New York had been delayed, so the Council had engaged John Vanderlyn to do the painting. An “intermittent Fever”, however, prevented JJ from traveling to New York. JJ assured the Common Council that his current refusal to sit for the portrait was for reasons of health and not partisanship, noting that his decision “may countenance conjectures not consistent with the honest satisfaction I entertain of the Honor intended me by the Corporation.”
In 1803–4, the Common Council was petitioned by Caleb Boyle who asked to take on the commission for the JJ painting. Hearing no response from the Council, Boyle preemptively completed the portrait and offered it for approval. The Council refused to purchase Boyle’s work, but did grant him $50 “for his trouble.”
The portrait of JJ that would hang in City Hall was not begun until 1804, when JT accepted the commission upon returning from Europe and completed it the following year. MCCNYC, 13 July 1801; 3 Aug.; 11 July 1803; 19 Mar. 1804; 20 Mar.; 10 July; 29 Nov.; 4 Feb. 1805; 29 Apr., 3: 10, 15, 339, 476, 480, 568, 632, 680, 736; John B. Coles to JJ, 6 Feb. 1802, ALS, NNC (EJ: 13018); PAJ to JJ, 8 Mar. 1802, below; JJ to Robert Lenox, 3 Apr. 1802, Dft, NNC (EJ: 09024); Jacob Morton to JJ, 30 Oct. 1804, ALS, NNC (EJ: 13019). See also Deborah B. Addeo, “The New York City Hall Portrait Collection, 1790–1830,” (Ph.D. Diss., City University of New York, 2005), 133–48.