Margaret was the second child of Cordelia Brooks Browne and James Maynadier Browne. She had three sisters (Katherine, Brooks and Emily) and a brother Causten.
Her older sister, Katherine, was an artist who illustrated, among other items, children’s verse written by her mother’s second husband, David K. Stevens.
Wikipedia has a sketch of her life as a portrait painter
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Fitzhugh_Browne
When I was young, in the mid 1950s, my family was fortunate enough to spend a few summers in Annisquam MA, living in a small house next door to Ms Browne on River Rd. The house we stayed in was called the Custom House, a service it provided many years ago.
Ms Browne was a very warm and kind person from my memory and always allowed us to visit her and partake of her lemonade and home made cookies. It's a treasure to have people in your life to give you such memories as Ms Browne did for us children.
We were blessed to have Ms Browne ask us to pose for portraits or to be part of the annual Annisquam Sea Fair event, The Wax Works. The fair and the Wax Works continue to this day - buy your tickets early for the Wax Works, they sell out quickly.
In the Wax Works, my twin brother and I were Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum (don't ask who was Tweedle Dum). My sister was the girl in the boat for a sketch of The Wreck Of The Hesperus. A famous poem involving a ship captain, his daughter, and a wreck on Norman's Woe off the coast of Gloucester. My older brother was one of the fiddlers in a sketch about Olde King Cole.
In terms of paintings, my twin brother and I posed, during many, many hot summer hours in her loft, for a double portrait. I held a small boat, my brother had a toy gun and holster. The painting is large, about 39 inches wide by 36 inches tall. I say is because it is one of my prize possessions and hangs in my living room.
The story behind this painting becoming in my possession is a testament to how Ms Browne treated people she knew. I was married in 1970 and as a way to share my life's history with my wife I took her to the very quaint village of Annisquam to show her the Custom House, Cambridge Beach, Mrs Dwyer, the Pearce family, and of course Ms Browne.
We visited her several times over that year and the next. We talked of the painting and the Wax Works. This must have made an impression on my wife as one day in 1971 she found out that Ms Browne was not well and in the Addison Gilbert Hospital in Gloucester, a city next to Annisquam.
My wife paid her a visit there. During that visit they talked about the paining and one thing lead to another and my wife said she wanted to buy the painting as a present for me. Ms Browne suggested a price which my wife gladly agreed to, wrote her a check, went to The Copley Society in Boston and brought home one of the greatest gifts I have ever received. It's right up there with the birth of my children.
The painting brings back memories of my childhood, the great summers spent in Annisquam, the beach, the swimming, listening to the radio as we played cards. Pleasant times, simpler times, a bygone era I wish I could recapture.
So as you can tell, I am forever grateful not just to my wife, but to Ms Browne for creating a painting that brings back such memories which I can revisit any time I want when I'm home.
The portrait my older sister is in is even larger, almost life size, of her and a neighbor playing dress up with clothes from mother's attic. I say is because her husband purchased it for her as a Christmas present one year.
Sibling rivalry being what it is, I am content to know that we paid far less for the "twins" painting because we were able to deal with the artist not a clearing house. Sorry sis.
Several years ago the Cape Ann Museum in Gloucester was able to gather many, many paintings of Ms Browne's and had an exhibit on the second floor. My wife and I marveled at the various styles Ms Browne used and the warmth that came through in her portraits of people in Annisquam.
Unfortunately we were not contacted about our paintings, so the show lacked two impressive portraits. However it did feature the portrait Ms Browne did of King Alfonso XIII of Spain and many "kings of industry" during her time.
I could go on and on about Ms Browne and her painting, but part of her sketch on Wikipedia pays a much better tribute to her than I can :
Two years after her death at age 87, the Copley Society held a "Memorial Exhibition of Flower Compositions and a Few Portraits by Margaret Fitzhugh Browne."
The Copley Society awards the Margaret Fitzhugh Browne Memorial Award for Excellence in Portraiture.
Well done good and faithful servant, rest in peace.
Her older sister, Katherine, was an artist who illustrated, among other items, children’s verse written by her mother’s second husband, David K. Stevens.
Wikipedia has a sketch of her life as a portrait painter
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Fitzhugh_Browne
When I was young, in the mid 1950s, my family was fortunate enough to spend a few summers in Annisquam MA, living in a small house next door to Ms Browne on River Rd. The house we stayed in was called the Custom House, a service it provided many years ago.
Ms Browne was a very warm and kind person from my memory and always allowed us to visit her and partake of her lemonade and home made cookies. It's a treasure to have people in your life to give you such memories as Ms Browne did for us children.
We were blessed to have Ms Browne ask us to pose for portraits or to be part of the annual Annisquam Sea Fair event, The Wax Works. The fair and the Wax Works continue to this day - buy your tickets early for the Wax Works, they sell out quickly.
In the Wax Works, my twin brother and I were Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum (don't ask who was Tweedle Dum). My sister was the girl in the boat for a sketch of The Wreck Of The Hesperus. A famous poem involving a ship captain, his daughter, and a wreck on Norman's Woe off the coast of Gloucester. My older brother was one of the fiddlers in a sketch about Olde King Cole.
In terms of paintings, my twin brother and I posed, during many, many hot summer hours in her loft, for a double portrait. I held a small boat, my brother had a toy gun and holster. The painting is large, about 39 inches wide by 36 inches tall. I say is because it is one of my prize possessions and hangs in my living room.
The story behind this painting becoming in my possession is a testament to how Ms Browne treated people she knew. I was married in 1970 and as a way to share my life's history with my wife I took her to the very quaint village of Annisquam to show her the Custom House, Cambridge Beach, Mrs Dwyer, the Pearce family, and of course Ms Browne.
We visited her several times over that year and the next. We talked of the painting and the Wax Works. This must have made an impression on my wife as one day in 1971 she found out that Ms Browne was not well and in the Addison Gilbert Hospital in Gloucester, a city next to Annisquam.
My wife paid her a visit there. During that visit they talked about the paining and one thing lead to another and my wife said she wanted to buy the painting as a present for me. Ms Browne suggested a price which my wife gladly agreed to, wrote her a check, went to The Copley Society in Boston and brought home one of the greatest gifts I have ever received. It's right up there with the birth of my children.
The painting brings back memories of my childhood, the great summers spent in Annisquam, the beach, the swimming, listening to the radio as we played cards. Pleasant times, simpler times, a bygone era I wish I could recapture.
So as you can tell, I am forever grateful not just to my wife, but to Ms Browne for creating a painting that brings back such memories which I can revisit any time I want when I'm home.
The portrait my older sister is in is even larger, almost life size, of her and a neighbor playing dress up with clothes from mother's attic. I say is because her husband purchased it for her as a Christmas present one year.
Sibling rivalry being what it is, I am content to know that we paid far less for the "twins" painting because we were able to deal with the artist not a clearing house. Sorry sis.
Several years ago the Cape Ann Museum in Gloucester was able to gather many, many paintings of Ms Browne's and had an exhibit on the second floor. My wife and I marveled at the various styles Ms Browne used and the warmth that came through in her portraits of people in Annisquam.
Unfortunately we were not contacted about our paintings, so the show lacked two impressive portraits. However it did feature the portrait Ms Browne did of King Alfonso XIII of Spain and many "kings of industry" during her time.
I could go on and on about Ms Browne and her painting, but part of her sketch on Wikipedia pays a much better tribute to her than I can :
Two years after her death at age 87, the Copley Society held a "Memorial Exhibition of Flower Compositions and a Few Portraits by Margaret Fitzhugh Browne."
The Copley Society awards the Margaret Fitzhugh Browne Memorial Award for Excellence in Portraiture.
Well done good and faithful servant, rest in peace.
Margaret was the second child of Cordelia Brooks Browne and James Maynadier Browne. She had three sisters (Katherine, Brooks and Emily) and a brother Causten.
Her older sister, Katherine, was an artist who illustrated, among other items, children’s verse written by her mother’s second husband, David K. Stevens.
Wikipedia has a sketch of her life as a portrait painter
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Fitzhugh_Browne
When I was young, in the mid 1950s, my family was fortunate enough to spend a few summers in Annisquam MA, living in a small house next door to Ms Browne on River Rd. The house we stayed in was called the Custom House, a service it provided many years ago.
Ms Browne was a very warm and kind person from my memory and always allowed us to visit her and partake of her lemonade and home made cookies. It's a treasure to have people in your life to give you such memories as Ms Browne did for us children.
We were blessed to have Ms Browne ask us to pose for portraits or to be part of the annual Annisquam Sea Fair event, The Wax Works. The fair and the Wax Works continue to this day - buy your tickets early for the Wax Works, they sell out quickly.
In the Wax Works, my twin brother and I were Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum (don't ask who was Tweedle Dum). My sister was the girl in the boat for a sketch of The Wreck Of The Hesperus. A famous poem involving a ship captain, his daughter, and a wreck on Norman's Woe off the coast of Gloucester. My older brother was one of the fiddlers in a sketch about Olde King Cole.
In terms of paintings, my twin brother and I posed, during many, many hot summer hours in her loft, for a double portrait. I held a small boat, my brother had a toy gun and holster. The painting is large, about 39 inches wide by 36 inches tall. I say is because it is one of my prize possessions and hangs in my living room.
The story behind this painting becoming in my possession is a testament to how Ms Browne treated people she knew. I was married in 1970 and as a way to share my life's history with my wife I took her to the very quaint village of Annisquam to show her the Custom House, Cambridge Beach, Mrs Dwyer, the Pearce family, and of course Ms Browne.
We visited her several times over that year and the next. We talked of the painting and the Wax Works. This must have made an impression on my wife as one day in 1971 she found out that Ms Browne was not well and in the Addison Gilbert Hospital in Gloucester, a city next to Annisquam.
My wife paid her a visit there. During that visit they talked about the paining and one thing lead to another and my wife said she wanted to buy the painting as a present for me. Ms Browne suggested a price which my wife gladly agreed to, wrote her a check, went to The Copley Society in Boston and brought home one of the greatest gifts I have ever received. It's right up there with the birth of my children.
The painting brings back memories of my childhood, the great summers spent in Annisquam, the beach, the swimming, listening to the radio as we played cards. Pleasant times, simpler times, a bygone era I wish I could recapture.
So as you can tell, I am forever grateful not just to my wife, but to Ms Browne for creating a painting that brings back such memories which I can revisit any time I want when I'm home.
The portrait my older sister is in is even larger, almost life size, of her and a neighbor playing dress up with clothes from mother's attic. I say is because her husband purchased it for her as a Christmas present one year.
Sibling rivalry being what it is, I am content to know that we paid far less for the "twins" painting because we were able to deal with the artist not a clearing house. Sorry sis.
Several years ago the Cape Ann Museum in Gloucester was able to gather many, many paintings of Ms Browne's and had an exhibit on the second floor. My wife and I marveled at the various styles Ms Browne used and the warmth that came through in her portraits of people in Annisquam.
Unfortunately we were not contacted about our paintings, so the show lacked two impressive portraits. However it did feature the portrait Ms Browne did of King Alfonso XIII of Spain and many "kings of industry" during her time.
I could go on and on about Ms Browne and her painting, but part of her sketch on Wikipedia pays a much better tribute to her than I can :
Two years after her death at age 87, the Copley Society held a "Memorial Exhibition of Flower Compositions and a Few Portraits by Margaret Fitzhugh Browne."
The Copley Society awards the Margaret Fitzhugh Browne Memorial Award for Excellence in Portraiture.
Well done good and faithful servant, rest in peace.
Her older sister, Katherine, was an artist who illustrated, among other items, children’s verse written by her mother’s second husband, David K. Stevens.
Wikipedia has a sketch of her life as a portrait painter
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Fitzhugh_Browne
When I was young, in the mid 1950s, my family was fortunate enough to spend a few summers in Annisquam MA, living in a small house next door to Ms Browne on River Rd. The house we stayed in was called the Custom House, a service it provided many years ago.
Ms Browne was a very warm and kind person from my memory and always allowed us to visit her and partake of her lemonade and home made cookies. It's a treasure to have people in your life to give you such memories as Ms Browne did for us children.
We were blessed to have Ms Browne ask us to pose for portraits or to be part of the annual Annisquam Sea Fair event, The Wax Works. The fair and the Wax Works continue to this day - buy your tickets early for the Wax Works, they sell out quickly.
In the Wax Works, my twin brother and I were Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum (don't ask who was Tweedle Dum). My sister was the girl in the boat for a sketch of The Wreck Of The Hesperus. A famous poem involving a ship captain, his daughter, and a wreck on Norman's Woe off the coast of Gloucester. My older brother was one of the fiddlers in a sketch about Olde King Cole.
In terms of paintings, my twin brother and I posed, during many, many hot summer hours in her loft, for a double portrait. I held a small boat, my brother had a toy gun and holster. The painting is large, about 39 inches wide by 36 inches tall. I say is because it is one of my prize possessions and hangs in my living room.
The story behind this painting becoming in my possession is a testament to how Ms Browne treated people she knew. I was married in 1970 and as a way to share my life's history with my wife I took her to the very quaint village of Annisquam to show her the Custom House, Cambridge Beach, Mrs Dwyer, the Pearce family, and of course Ms Browne.
We visited her several times over that year and the next. We talked of the painting and the Wax Works. This must have made an impression on my wife as one day in 1971 she found out that Ms Browne was not well and in the Addison Gilbert Hospital in Gloucester, a city next to Annisquam.
My wife paid her a visit there. During that visit they talked about the paining and one thing lead to another and my wife said she wanted to buy the painting as a present for me. Ms Browne suggested a price which my wife gladly agreed to, wrote her a check, went to The Copley Society in Boston and brought home one of the greatest gifts I have ever received. It's right up there with the birth of my children.
The painting brings back memories of my childhood, the great summers spent in Annisquam, the beach, the swimming, listening to the radio as we played cards. Pleasant times, simpler times, a bygone era I wish I could recapture.
So as you can tell, I am forever grateful not just to my wife, but to Ms Browne for creating a painting that brings back such memories which I can revisit any time I want when I'm home.
The portrait my older sister is in is even larger, almost life size, of her and a neighbor playing dress up with clothes from mother's attic. I say is because her husband purchased it for her as a Christmas present one year.
Sibling rivalry being what it is, I am content to know that we paid far less for the "twins" painting because we were able to deal with the artist not a clearing house. Sorry sis.
Several years ago the Cape Ann Museum in Gloucester was able to gather many, many paintings of Ms Browne's and had an exhibit on the second floor. My wife and I marveled at the various styles Ms Browne used and the warmth that came through in her portraits of people in Annisquam.
Unfortunately we were not contacted about our paintings, so the show lacked two impressive portraits. However it did feature the portrait Ms Browne did of King Alfonso XIII of Spain and many "kings of industry" during her time.
I could go on and on about Ms Browne and her painting, but part of her sketch on Wikipedia pays a much better tribute to her than I can :
Two years after her death at age 87, the Copley Society held a "Memorial Exhibition of Flower Compositions and a Few Portraits by Margaret Fitzhugh Browne."
The Copley Society awards the Margaret Fitzhugh Browne Memorial Award for Excellence in Portraiture.
Well done good and faithful servant, rest in peace.
