John Hart (c.1713 – 1779) was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and resident of what is now Hopewell, N. J. However, Hart was not a well-known figure in the Revolution. He spent 26 years in public service, but mostly at the state level in New Jersey, including as Speaker of the New Jersey State Assembly.
While Hart’s signature obviously is recorded, no known authentic portrait of Hart has ever been discovered, even after exhaustive search over centuries by family, biographers, and artists. Since Hart died before the end of the Revolution, no portraits were made of him as an important figure after the new country was formed.
Instead, starting in 1869, various “artistic impressions” of him have been created, plus additional derivative works, which have caused confusion when thought to be authentic portraits. The best approximation that we have is a composite portrait commissioned by Cleon E. Hammond in 1977 that was based on portraits of Hart’s decedents.
In 1824, Hart’s first biographer provided a description of him based on interviews with people who had known him: “He was in personal appearance highly prepossessing; and in his younger days had been called handsome. His height was about five feet, 10 inches, his form straight and well proportioned, his hair very black, his eyes light, and his complexion dark.”
- Read the full History Brief on Portraits of John Hart, Signer (PDF)
1869 – Henry Bryan Hall – Thomas A. Emmet Collection
In 1869, collector Thomas Attis Emmett commissioned artist Henry Brian Hall to paint watercolor miniatures of the individual signers, including John Hart, labeled “H. B. Hall NY 1869”
In 1870, Hall produced an identical etching after his watercolor of Hart, labeled “Engraved by H. B. Hall from Drawing in Collection of T. A. Emmet, 1870.”
This imaginative likeness began the confusion over images of John Hart, as over time these and their derivatives have sometimes been regarded as true portraits.
1876 – Ole Erekson – Portraits & Autographs of the Signers
In 1876, artist Ole Erekson published a lithograph for the U. S. Centennial titled “Portraits & Autographs of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence.”
It featured an eagle and patriotic motifs, with individual oval portraits of all 56 founding fathers, accompanied by their personal signatures underneath.
Unlike other previous renderings of the founders, Erekson included conjectural representations of all the signers for whom there were no known portraits or reliable likenesses, including John Hart.
1884 – Herman F. Deigendesch – Reproductions
In 1884, Hart descendant Fanny S. Magee commissioned artist Herman Deigendesch to reproduce in oil a life-size copy of the Hall “original” for display in Independence Hall in Philadelphia.
Her sister, Anna, also commissioned Deigendesch to do a miniature on ivory, which the artist clearly signed, “Deigendesch 1894 copy.”
These created additional confusion, contributing some credibility to the “original,” especially through the prestigious location.
c.1896 – John Hart – John Hart Monument Dedication Pamphlet
Another variant of the Hall portrait was used in the 1896 pamphlet (printed 30 years later) to record the July 4, 1865 dedication of the John Hart Monument (“Oration Delivered by Governor Parker at the Dedication of a Monument to the Memory of John Hart…”).
This likeness was created by Hart’s great grandson, an artist-photographer also named John Hart.
1977 – Charles Howard Waterhouse – Composite Portrait (Hammond)
Finally, in 1977, Hart biographer Cleon E. Hammond published his definitive book, John Hart: The Biography of a Signer of the Declaration of Independence.
For the book, Hammond moved away from the Hall image by commissioning artist Charles Howard Waterhouse to create a composite visualization of John Hart, based on three portraits of Hart descendants.
The resulting composite portrait provides the best approximation of Hart’s actual appearance. Hammond reported that it also shared common features with two additional portraits of Hart’s daughter and grandson.
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Comments and additions welcome.
- Read the full History Brief on Portraits of John Hart, Signer (PDF)
- See more on John Hart and the John Hart Memorial as part of Hopewell Borough Sites in the Revolutionary War
More on the Old School Baptist Meetinghouse
The Old School Baptist Church was the core of the historic settlement of Hopewell Borough in the 1700s and 1800s, as the settlement grew into a village and then into a town. The current church building was constructed in 1822 on the site of the first meeting house, which was built in 1747. The Baptist congregation itself was organized in 1715.
Posts
- Main post: Old School Baptist Church – Pictorial History
- Hopewell Borough Sites in the Revolutionary War – Including the Meetinghouse and John Hart Memorial
Video
- Panel presentation video on YouTube – Discuss church building and cemetery, and future plans. (Dec. 2023)
Images
- 40+ Old School Baptist Church images in the Image Gallery
- Interior photographs from 2010 in the Image Gallery
Documents
- Old School Baptist Meetinghouse: Cemetery Tour by Ian Burrow (PDF)
- Historical Old School Baptist Church booklets in the Pamphlet Collection
- 1936 Historic American Building Survey (HABS) information and building plan drawings in the Pamphlet Collection
References
- A Chronological History of the Hopewell Baptist Church and Its Original Property – and A Chronological History of the Expansion of the Hopewell Baptist Church Cemetery, Richard L. Porter, The Hopewell Museum, 2024
- Old School Baptist Church and Cemetery – National Register of Historic Places Registration Form (PDF), Christie Alderman, 2024
- Hopewell Borough Cultural Resource Survey, N. J. Historic Preservation Office, 1985
- 1936 Historic American Building Survey (HABS) information and building plan drawings in the Pamphlet Collection
