Name/Title
Portrait of John Smith PrestonEntry/Object ID
1999.10.1Description
Portrait of a male with brown hair, brown eyes, and a dark suit over a white shirt. The background is painted brown and the portrait is contained in a gold frame.Artwork Details
Medium
Oil on CanvasSubject Person
John Smith PrestonContext
John Smith Preston (1809–1881), son of Francis (1765–1835) and Sarah Buchanan Campbell Preston (1778–1845), grew up in Virginia and attended Hampden-Sydney College, the University of Virginia, and Harvard College. In 1830, he married Caroline Martha Hampton (1807–1883), the daughter of Wade Hampton I (1754–1835) and Mary Cantey Hampton (1779–1863). Together, John and Caroline spent the first five years of their marriage living in Virginia. Then, after the death of Caroline’s father, the Prestons began splitting their time between Houmas—the Louisiana sugar plantation they inherited from Wade Hampton I—and Columbia, where John established a legal practice. In Columbia, John, Caroline, and their growing family lived at the Hampton-Preston Mansion with Caroline's mother, Caroline’s sister Susan (1816–1845), and, eventually, Susan’s children. Between 1848 and 1850, the Prestons remodeled several aspects of the Hampton-Preston Mansion and added a four-story addition to the north façade.
In 1848, John was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives and then served in the state senate from 1854 to 1858. A strong proponent of the Confederacy, John joined the army in 1861 and then fled to York County with his family in the final days of the Civil War. In February 1865, Union troops seized control of the Hampton-Preston Mansion and Major General John A. Logan (1826–1886) established his headquarters there. Following the war, the Prestons left their war-torn country for a yearlong trip to Europe. In 1873, they were forced to sell the Hampton-Preston Mansion to cover their growing debts.
During his lifetime, John supported several artisans including sculptor Hiram Powers (1805–1873) and painter James DeVeaux (1812–1844). DeVeaux likely painted this portrait the year John and Caroline were married. The reverse of this canvas includes the inscription: “Sally [indecipherable word], John S. Preston, Columbia, S.C.” While John had a sister named Sarah “Sally” Preston Floyd (1802–1879), it is uncertain as to who Sally is in relation to the painting. Research on this piece is ongoing.Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
James DeVeauxAttribution
Attributed toDate made
circa 1830Inscription/Signature/Marks
Type
InscriptionLocation
Back on stretcherTranscription
Sally ****/ John S. Preston of S.C.Material/Technique
PencilDimensions
Height
39 inWidth
34 inDepth
2-1/2 in
