Merrill G. Wheelock
Encyclopedia
Merrill Greene Wheelock (1822-1866) was an artist and architect in Boston
, Massachusetts
in the 19th-century. He served in the Massachusetts infantry in the American Civil War
.
(1857) and the Boston Athenaeum. Among his early supporters was James Elliot Cabot. Wheelock was especially known for watercolors: he "has a local reputation of being our best painter in that department, his pictures being full of brilliant color." In 1852 he kept a studio on Tremont Row
, and in 1858 on Summer Street
.
In 1865 Wheelock designed the architecture of Boston's new Masonic Temple, which would move a few blocks down Tremont Street, from Temple Place to the corner of Boylston Street. Illness prevented him from completing the design, finished by architect George F. Meacham
and built in 1867.
One of Wheelock's watercolor landscape paintings appeared in the 1881 exhibit of the Boston Art Club. A contemporary reviewer commented: "Wheelock is almost forgotten, although it is not so very many years since he died. But this watercolor shows that he has well-grounded claims upon our remembrance. It will certainly be better for his fame to know him by his paintings, than by such architectural absurdities as the Masonic Temple."
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
in the 19th-century. He served in the Massachusetts infantry in the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
Biography
Wheelock exhibited at the Boston Art ClubBoston Art Club
The Boston Art Club, Boston, Massachusetts, for nearly 157 years, serves as a nexus for Members and non Members to access the world of Fine Art. Currently more than 250 members maintain an active environment for the support and promotion of these works....
(1857) and the Boston Athenaeum. Among his early supporters was James Elliot Cabot. Wheelock was especially known for watercolors: he "has a local reputation of being our best painter in that department, his pictures being full of brilliant color." In 1852 he kept a studio on Tremont Row
Tremont Row
Tremont Row in Boston, Massachusetts, was a short street that flourished in the 19th and early-20th centuries. It was located near the intersection of Court, Tremont, and Cambridge streets, in today's Government Center area. It existed until the 1920s, when it became known as Scollay Square...
, and in 1858 on Summer Street
Summer Street (Boston)
Summer Street in Boston, Massachusetts extends from Downtown Crossing in the Financial District, over Fort Point Channel, and into South Boston...
.
In 1865 Wheelock designed the architecture of Boston's new Masonic Temple, which would move a few blocks down Tremont Street, from Temple Place to the corner of Boylston Street. Illness prevented him from completing the design, finished by architect George F. Meacham
George Meacham
George Frederick Meacham was an architect in the Boston, Massachusetts area active in the 19th century. He is notable for designing Boston's Public Garden; the Massachusetts Bicycle Club; and churches, homes, and monuments in greater Boston and elsewhere in New England.- Biography :Meacham was...
and built in 1867.
One of Wheelock's watercolor landscape paintings appeared in the 1881 exhibit of the Boston Art Club. A contemporary reviewer commented: "Wheelock is almost forgotten, although it is not so very many years since he died. But this watercolor shows that he has well-grounded claims upon our remembrance. It will certainly be better for his fame to know him by his paintings, than by such architectural absurdities as the Masonic Temple."
Works illustrated by Wheelock
- Thomas Starr King. The White Hills: their legends, landscape, and poetry. N. Conway, N.H.: I.N. Andrews, 1859. Engravings by John Andrew, from drawings by M.G. Wheelock.
- Edward H. Rogers. Reminiscences of military service in the Forty-third regiment, Massachusetts infantry, during the great Civil war, 1862-63. Boston: Franklin press, Rand, Avery, & co., 1883
Works about Wheelock
- Appletons' annual cyclopaedia and register of important events: Embracing political, military, and ecclesiastical affairs; public documents; biography, statistics, commerce, finance, literature, science, agriculture, and mechanical industry, Volume 6. D. Appleton and company, 1867; p.582.
- Samuel L. GerrySamuel Lancaster GerrySamuel Lancaster Gerry was an artist in 19th-century Boston, Massachusetts. He painted portraits, and also landscapes of the White Mountains and other locales in New England. He was affiliated with the New England Art Union, and the Boston Artists' Association. In 1857 he co-founded the Boston Art...
. Old Masters of Boston. New England Magazine, v.3, no.6, Feb. 1891. - George C. Groce and David H. Wallace. The New-York Historical SocietyNew-York Historical SocietyThe New-York Historical Society is an American history museum and library located in New York City at the corner of 77th Street and Central Park West in Manhattan. Founded in 1804 as New York's first museum, the New-York Historical Society presents exhibitions, public programs and research that...
's Dictionary of Artists in America, 1564-1860. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1957. - Sinclair Hamilton. Early American Book Illustrators and Wood Engravers, 1670-1870: A catalogue of a collection of American books illustrated for the most part with woodcuts and wood engravings in the Princeton University Library. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1958-1968.