Kenmore Collections

Betty Washington Lewis
after John Wollaston
c. 1800 copy Before the days of cameras, colonial gentry and members of the mercantile class documented their families and property by sitting for portraits. These portraits were often painted by itinerant artists, such as John Wollaston, who traveled throughout the colonies in search of commissions. Miniatures in gilded lockets were often the only visual remembrance of loved ones who might be separated by distance or death.

The George Washington Foundation's collections include several portraits and lockets of Lewis family members