St. Peter's Church

Artist Carrie A. Bowne Swift

Periodca. 1880 - 1890

MediumOil on metal

Dimensions7.1 × 5.25 in. (18 × 13.3 cm)

InscribedInscribed lower center, "St. Peter's Church / Freehold, N. J."

ClassificationsLandscapes & Still Life

Credit LineGift of William S. Holmes, 1932

Object number146

DescriptionThree-quarter view of a shingled, red painted church with two entrances on the gable end surmounted by a cupola capped with a half-dome roof and weather vane. Pinnacles ornament the corners of the cupola base. Four gothic arched windows appear on the long elevation. There is a lower extension to the rear of the building. Five trees surround the church, which is surrounded by a picket fence. A street with a blue stone sidewalk establishes the foreground. The sky is mottled blue that transitions to pink on the horizon. A flock of birds fly to the left of the weather vane.
Curatorial RemarksAn amateur artist who had the opportunity to study painting, drawing, and perspective while attending the Freehold Young Ladies Seminary during the late 1850s, Carrie Swift (1844 - 1924) depicted many sites associated with the Battle of Monmouth, often presenting her renderings of a single structure to friends, relatives, and neighbors as souvenirs. Her portrayal of St. Peter’s Church shows the shingled-style building as it appeared between 1869 and 1878–79, when it was painted Venetian red. Swift’s use of an unconventional support (in this case metal), as well as her boldly delineated forms and rich palette, link her to the tradition of American folk art. While not signed, the Association's 1932 accession records describe the little painting as "St. Peter's Church by Mrs. Carrie Swift." The donor would have known her. And the work is in her familiar style. The artist copied the scene from a woodcut engraving of St. Peter's Church that appeared in Harper's Monthly Magazine in June 1878 (vol. 57, no. 337.)NotesSt. Peter's Church, located on Throckmorton Street in Freehold Borough, Monmouth County, was begun in 1771 to designs provided by Robert Smith, a builder/architect from Philadelphia. It was not completed when the Revolution broke out. Construction began again in 1793, and the church was largely finished by 1797. Between 1838 and 1841, significant alterations were made to the building. The interior orientation was changed from a transverse to longitudinal axis, two entrances were opened up on the gable end, and pointed gothic windows were installed in the long elevations. St. Peter's Church was painted Venetian Red in 1869. It remained this color until 1878, when the building was again remodeled into an example of the Gothic Revival.

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