A Brief History of Tea as it traveled to England & her Colonies (until those pesky, patriotic "tea parties")

Dirk Stoop (Dutch painter, c 1610-1685) Catherine of Braganza Wife of Charles II c 1661

In the 2700s BC, Chinese mythological tales cite the origin of tea-drinking to 2737 BC, when Chinese Emporor Shen Nung sips boiled drinking water into which a tea leaf has floated.  By the 3rdC of the Common Era (AD), many oral stories & some early written medical texts about tea drinks and their health benefits date back to this period in Southeast Asian countries, where the tea plant (camellia sinensis) is native.

In the 6thC, Indian & Japanese legends tell that Indian prince Bodhidharma “couldn’t keep his eyes open while meditating to become a Buddhist priest. Disgusted with himself, he cut off his eyelids & threw them to the ground. From his lashes the camellia (aka tea) plant sprouted.” New tea gardens follow the spread of Buddhism across Asia, as Buddhist monks in China & Japan begin saving the seeds of tea trees, planting them along their travels.

In the 8thC, Chinese tea scholar Lu Yü wrote what is thought to be the 1st book about tea: Ch’a Ching (The Classic of Tea), describing tea’s cultivation, processing, preparation & tea rituals of ancient Asia. A Classic of Tea was written around CE 760 by Lu Yu (733-804), a native of Jingling, located in modern-day Hubei Province. It became popular for its systematic & comprehensive research from the perspective of both the natural & social aspects of tea. It has laid the solid foundation for a uniquely Chinese culture of tea that has fascinated the rest of the world for more than a thousand years. As a result, Lu Yu is known as the “Sage of Tea” in China. 

By the 9thC, tea, called “ch’a,” in China becomes the national drink during the Tang Dynasty (618 to 906), would remain China’s secret for the next 700 years. China did not want to divulge the propagation & drying methods that had been dutifully kept within the confines of the Great Wall. A penalty of death was the price paid for even mentioning roasting & drying.  Tea leaves were so valuable that, compressed into embossed bricks, they were even used for money. Teahouses & tea gardens are now commonplace throughout China.

By the 16thC, Japanese Imperial tea master & Buddhist monk Sen No Rikyu devised a simple, austere tea ceremony known as ‘wabi cha,’ or the “tea of quiet taste”, which requires a “humble reverence for tea & life. However, it did not appeal to the emperor who preferred a glittering, exhibitionist affair. Because of this difference in taste, Sen Rikyu was commanded to commit suicide.” (See: Israel, Andrea. Taking Tea. New York: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1987). 

In 1557, Portugal colonizes the Chinese port Macau, & begins bringing tea back to Europe. Arabs also bring tea to Europe by way of their trade with the Venetians in Italy, c 1559. 

In the 17thC, Black tea (called “red tea” in China where it originated) is invented (until this point, teas are green or oolong). As Russia & China work to establish a safe route for trade caravans to travel, the Chinese ambassador to Moscow makes a gift of several chests of tea to Tsar Aleksey Mikhaylovich, soon making tea a much desired import. It is reported that the Russian aristocracy enjoyed English-style tea ceremonies even before the British made it a part of their culture. There were lavish parties at which society women drank tea as their male companions downed cold vodka.

Prior to its importation to Europe by Dutch traders around 1610, tea was almost unknown to most  Westerners, who routinely began their day with a mug of beer or ale. Three exotic beverages—coffee, tea, and chocolate—arrived in 17C Europe at a time of burgeoning exploration and trade, and their arrival caused a near revolution in drinking habits. Celebrated by some, deplored by others, these stimulating brews gave rise to a number of important social institutions, such as the coffeehouse, the tea garden, and the ritual of afternoon tea. 

In the 17thC, Dutch settlers of New Amsterdam bring the first tea to America in the early 1600s, but Americans do not take instantly to the custom of taking tea. Andrea Israel tells us that “There were still those new Americans who were unfamiliar with the tea leaf. Their dislike of the brown brew probably stemmed from the fact that it was stewed for 2 or 3 hours. Some tried to serve it like spinach with salt & butter, others ate it on toasted bread.”

Charles II by Adriaen Hanneman (England, 1603-1671)

Tea, then called cha, was imported to Europe during the Portuguese expansion of the 16th century. Portuguese Catherine of Braganza, wife of England's Charles II, took the tea habit to the court of Great Britain around 1662. Though Portuguese and Dutch traders have for decades been importing tea to Western Europe, it is King Charles II’s marriage to the Portuguese princess Catherine of Braganza, that ultimately makes tea-drinking popular amongst the British aristocracy. “When Catherine married Charles, she was the focus of attention – everything from her clothes to her furniture became the source of court talk. Her regular drinking of tea encouraged others to drink it. Ladies flocked to copy her and be a part of her circle.” (See: Watkins, Sarah-Beth. Catherine of Braganza: Charles II’s Restoration Queen. (Croydon: Chronos Books, 2017).

For The History of Tea see Tea Story

Joseph Van Aken  (Antwerp-born British painter, c.1699‑1749) A Tea Party 1719-1721.

London coffee houses also were responsible for introducing tea to everyday England. One of the 1st coffee house merchants to offer tea was Thomas Garway, who owned an establishment in Exchange Alley in London. He sold both prepared & dry tea to the public as early as 1657. Three years later he issued a broadsheet advertising tea at £6 and £10 per pound touting its virtues at "making the body active and lusty" & "preserving perfect health until extreme old age."

Attributed to Johann Zoffany (German-born British painter, 1733-1810), A Family of Three at Tea, 1727

Colonial Americans quickly adopted the taste for these imported beverages and their fashionable equipage. Colonial coffeehouses, following the London model, became powerful social catalysts, providing an excellent forum for the exchange of ideas and the distribution of news. All three beverages were also consumed in the home, where fine silver and ceramic vessels were especially valued, &

American Silversmiths emulated British and Continental styles. 

Charles Philips (British artist,  1703–1747) Tea Party at Lord Harrington's House, St James detail 1730

Tea was an expensive commodity, as were all the items related to its consumption: the tea table, silver, and porcelain. Tea was normally kept locked by the lady of the household. In Britain & her colonies, knowing how to properly use tea equipment and owning fine porcelain china set her apart from her lessers which is why tea sets and tea leaves were often only handled by the mistress of the house. A noblewoman kept the key for the locking tea caddy or teapoy, from which she smartly blended her own teas, in full view of her guests, to reassure them of the quality of the tea she served. 

Charles Philips (British artist,  1703–1747) The Strong Family detail

Portraits of families at tea demonstrated their wealth, domesticity, and genteel informality.  Tea-drinking came to epitomize civilized behavior in the 18C.  Tea gained popularity quickly in England's coffee houses, & by 1700, over 500 British coffee houses also served tea.

Charles Philips (British artist,  1703–1747) The Cromwell and Thornhill Families Taking Tea detail 1730

The rise in popularity of tea drinking distressed the British tavern owners, as tea cut their sales of ale & gin, & it was bad news for the government, who depended upon a steady stream of revenue from taxes on liquor sales.

Joseph Van Aken  (Antwerp-born British painter, c.1699‑1749) An English Family at Tea 1725

As the century progressed, the use of enslaved labor increased the production of tea and sugar to such an extent that it became available to all classes in society.

Detail The Wollaston Family, William Hogarth, 1730

By 1750, tea had become the favored drink of Britain's lower classes, as well as the wealthy.

A British Family Served with Tea 1745 Unknown

Charles II tried to counter the loss of tax income from spirits arising from the growth of tea, with several acts forbidding its sale in private houses. This measure was designed to counter sedition; but it was so unpopular, that it was impossible to enforce.

Philip Reinagle (British painter, 1749-1833) A Lady and Two Gentlemen seated at a tea table

A 1676 act taxed tea & required coffee house operators to apply for a license.  Failing to curb the popularity of tea, the British government decided to profit from tea.

Gawen Hamilton (British artist, 1692-1737) An elegant family at tea

By the mid 18th-century, the duty on tea had reached an absurd 119%. This heavy taxation had the effect of creating a whole new industry - tea smuggling.

Unknown 18th-Century British Artist, A Tea Party

Ships from Holland & Scandinavia brought tea to the British coast, then stood offshore, while smugglers met them unloading their precious cargo in small vessels. The smugglers, often local fishermen, snuck the tea inland through underground passages & hidden paths to special hiding places. One of the favorite hiding places was in the local parish church.

Joseph Van Aken  (Antwerp-born British painter, c.1699‑1749) An English Family at Tea detail 1720

Even smuggled tea remained expensive for the common man; however, and therefore extremely profitable. Many smugglers began to adulterate the tea with other substances, such as willow, licorice, & sloe leaves. Used tea leaves were also re-dried & added to fresh leaves.

Jean-Etienne Liotard (Swiss artist, 1702-1789) Still Life Tea Set, 1781-83

During the 18th century, tea drinking was as popular in Britain’s American colonies as it was in Britain itself. Legally, all tea imported into America had to be shipped from Britain, & all tea imported into Britain had to be shipped in by the East India Company. The practice of tea drinking arrived with colonists from both England and the Netherlands and was already established by the mid-17C, evidenced by the number of tea wares recorded in household inventories. The earliest of these were undoubtedly imported from abroad, but American silversmiths began producing teapots by the start of the 18C. At first globular or pear-shaped, apple-shaped teapots became the norm by the mid-18C. By the later decades, drum- and oval-shaped pots with straight spouts became popular.

Francis Hayman (1708-1776), Jonathan Tyers and his family, 1740

However, for most of the 18th century, the East India Company was not allowed to export directly to America. But during the 1770s, the East India Company ran into financial problems: illegal tea smuggling into Britain was vastly reducing the amount of tea being bought from the Company.

Ladies Having Tea c 1740 Unknown British artist

Smuggling led to a downturn in its profits, as well as an increase in its stockpile of unsold tea. In an attempt to revive its flagging fortunes & avoid bankruptcy, the Company asked the British government for permission to export tea directly to America, a move that would enable it to get rid of its surplus stock of tea. The Company actually owed the government £1 million, so the government had no desire to let the Company go bankrupt.

Johann Zoffany (German-born painter, 1733-1810) John, Lord Willoughby de Broke, and his Family.  c 1766

Thus in 1773, the Tea Act was passed, granting the Company’s wish, and allowing a duty of 3d per lb to be levied on the exports to America. The Tea Act, passed by Parliament on May 10, 1773, would launch the final spark to the revolutionary movement in Boston. The act was not intended to raise revenue in the American colonies, & imposed no new taxes. It was designed to prop up the East India Company which was floundering financially & burdened with 18 million pounds of unsold tea. This tea was to be shipped directly to the colonies, and sold at a bargain price.

Francis Hayman (1708-1776), The Gasciogne Family

The Townshend Duties were still in place, however, & the radical leaders in America found reason to believe that this act was a maneuver to buy popular support for the taxes already in force. The direct sale of tea, via British agents, would also have undercut the business of local merchants. The colonials were growing increasingly resentful of "taxation without representation."

Drinking tea in the British American colonies, the John Potter Overmantle at the Newport Historical Society in Rhode Island

The British government did not anticipate this being a problem for the colonials. By being exported directly to America, the cost of tea there would actually become cheaper, & 3d per lb was considerably less duty than was paid on tea destined for the British market. But it had underestimated the strength of the American resistance to being taxed at all by Britain. The issue of the taxation in America had been hotly debated for some years.

Drinking tea in the British American colonies, Gansevoort Limner, possibly Pieter Vanderlyn 1687-1778 Susanna Truax.

Many Americans objected on principle to being taxed by a Parliament which did not represent them. Instead, they wanted to raise taxes themselves to fund their own administration. But successive British governments reserved the right to tax the colonies, & various bungled attempts to impose taxation had hardened American opposition. In the later 1760s, opposition took the form of boycotts of taxed goods. As a replacement for them, the Americans either bought smuggled goods or attempted to find substitutes for tea made from native products.

Gawen Hamilton (British Painter, ca.1698-1737) The Sharpe Family Maryland State Archives

Colonists in Philadelphia & New York turned the tea ships back to Britain. In Charleston, the cargo was left to rot on the docks. In Boston the Royal Governor was stubborn & held the ships in port, where the colonists would not allow them to unload. Cargoes of tea filled the harbor, & the British ship's crews were stalled in Boston looking for work & often finding trouble. This situation lead to the Boston Tea Party.

Ordinarily conservative shippers & shopkeepers were directly impacted by the new law & were vocal in their opposition. Previously, American ships brought much of the tea from England, but that trade was now reserved for the East India Company. The shop owners objected to the new practice of using only selected merchants to sell the tea; many would be excluded from this trade in favor of a new monopoly.  The radical patriots found allies in the formerly conservative business community.

Ladies of the gentry class in colonial America did not have the opportunity to attend public meetings, debate, vote, or have a real voice in democracy. Some women, such as Mrs. Charles Carroll & Mrs. William Paca of Annapolis, supported the patriotic cause in other ways. During the years of the American Revolution, these women grew a variety of herbs that replaced English teas. These included varieties of mint, chamomile, rosemary, lemon balm, and valerian root.

Rather than pay tea taxes, even before the Revolution, colonials were looking for tea alternatives, An article in the November 21st, 1768 Boston Gazette advised,  "Tea made from a plant or shrub (Ceanothus americanus) grown in Pearsontown about 20 miles from Portland, Maine, was served to a circle of ladies and gentlemen in Newbury Port, who pronounced it nearly, if not quite, its equal in flavor to genuine Bohea [one of three Chinese black teas tossed overboard later in 1773]. So important a discovery claims attention, especially at this crisis. If we have the plant, nothing is wanted but the process of curing it into tea of our own manufacture."

In 1774, Manasseh Cutler wrote of the Liberty Tea called the New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus Americanus) "The leaves of this shrub have been much used by the common people, in some parts of the country, in the room of India tea; and is, perhaps, the best substitute the country affords. They immerse the fresh leaves in a boiling decoction of the leaves and branches of the same shrub, and then dry them with a gentle heat. The tea, when the leaves are cured in this way, has an agreeable taste, and leaves a roughness on the tongue somewhat resembling that of the bohea tea."

Finally at the end of the resulting war with America, in 1784, William Pitt the Younger introduced the Commutation Act, which dropped the tax on tea from 119% to 12.5%, effectively ending smuggling. And tea did return to the New Republic of the United States of America.

18C American Woman - Elizabeth Buckner Stith (Mrs Drury Stith) 1695-1700 - 1756)

Elizabeth Buckner Stith (Mrs Drury Stith) 1695-1700 - 1756) by William Dering 1745-49.

Elizabeth Buckner Stith was the daughter of William Buckner and Katherine Ballard Buckner. She married Colonel Drury Stith (d. 1740). They lived in Prince George County, Virginia. The portrait descended in the family of her son, Griffin Stith of Brunswick County. The portrait was likely painted in Williamsburg.

The subject wears a blue-gray wrap dress with red lining and a brown-green drape. She is turned towards her left and appears inside a painted oval frame. The portrait is inscribed “W. Dering” on the left and “AEstatis Suae 50” on the right.

See: Colonial Williamsburg eMuseum; Carolyn J. Weekley, Painters and Paintings in the Early American South (2013), 191-195; Graham Hood, Charles Bridges and William Dering: Two Virginia Painters, 1735-1750 (1975), 101-103.

Janine Yorimoto Boldt, researcher. Colonial Virginia Portraits. Omohundro Institute of Early American History & Culture, Digital Project, 2019

18C American Woman with Dog

Mather Brown (American artist, 1761-1831) Lady with a Dog 1786

18C American Woman - Mary Jacquelin 1714-1764

Mary Jacquelin 1714-1764  Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

Mary Jacquelin 1714-1764 was born in Jamestown, Virginia. Her father was Edward 1668–1730, & her mother was Martha Cary 1686–1738. Her father Edward Jacquelin was descended from the Jacquelin family of Vendee, France. She married John Smith 1715–1756. She had 16 children, before she died on October 4, 1764, at "Shooter's Hill" in Middlesex, Virginia, at the age of 50. 

"Shooter's Hill," the home of the Smiths in Middlesex county, was not far from the town of Urbanna which was established some 30+ years after the plantation was created. The property appears on Augustine Herrman's, (who may have been the 1st Czech settler in America) map, which he named “Virginia & Maryland as it is planted & inhabited this present year 1670.” Herrman's map shows a total of about 1,300 plantations &  29 Indian villages.  In Middlesex County it delineates 30 properties.  Plantations there on the north shore of the Piankatank River included Turks Ferry, 1664 (1608 Indian Village of 20 associated with John Smith); & Shooters Hill, established in the late 1600s or earlier, consisting of 1,274 acres owned by Augustine Smith. The home there was a large three-story brick, covered on the top with lead, which had a fish-pond built at the house, where a mess of fish might be caught to be cooked immediately.  One Augustine Smith  who came to Middlesex from the neighboring county of Gloucester, where their home was known as Purton. These Smiths were prominent in both Gloucester & Middlesex. Augustine Smith was a man of wealth & it is said that he traveled with his coach & six, with postillion in livery. 

(The property had descended to Dr. Augustine Jaquelin Smith 1774-1830 who was born to Augustine Smith 1739-1774 & Margaret (Boyd) Smith. The father died 10  days later, & within 7 years his mother & grandparents had died. He & his sister Mary were then raised under the guardianship of his uncle John Smith, a colonel in the Revolutionary War who was later elected member of the US House of Representatives. His grandfather was Augustine Smith was the eldest son of John Smith 1715-1756 & Mary Jacquelin 1714-1764.)

18C American Women Timeline 1710-1729

1711 Artist: Henrietta Johnston 1674-1729. Subject: Henriette Charlotte de Chastaigner, Mrs Nathaniel Broughton

1710

3,000 German men and women from the Palatinate settle near Livingston Manor on the Hudson River in New York to produce naval stores. When the colony fails, the settlers go first to the Mohawk Valley (in New York) and finally to eastern Pennsylvania.

The English Parliament passes the Post Office Act which sets a postal system for the American colonies controlled by the postmaster general of London and his deputy in New York City.

New York forbids blacks, Indians, and mulattos from walking at night without lighted lanterns.

1711

Pennsylvania prohibits the importation of male & female blacks and Indians.

Rhode Island prohibits the clandestine importation of male & female black and Indian slaves. (See this blog for more information of enslaved women in the 18th century.)

1711-13
Tuscarora Indian War in North and South Carolina. Hostilities break out between Native Americans and settlers in North Carolina after the massacre of male & female settlers there.

1712
The Carolina colony is officially divided into North Carolina and South Carolina.

Charles II's Grant of New England to the Duke of York, 1676 - Exemplified by Queen Anne; October 30

The Pennsylvania assembly bans the import of male & female slaves into that colony.


In Massachusetts, the first sperm whale is captured at sea by an American from Nantucket.

Grace Smith writes The Dying Mothers Legacy: Or the Good and Heavenly Counsel of that Eminent and Pious Matron, Mrs. Grace Smith, late Widow to Mr. Ralph Smith of Eastham in New-England. Left as a Perpetual Monitor to Her Surviving Children; As It Was Taken from Her Own Mouth a Little Before Her Death, by the Minister From that Town Where She Died. Boston, Printed and sold by Timothy Green, at the lower-end of Middle-Street, 1712

An alleged slave revolt in New York City leads to violent outbreaks. Nine whites are killed and eighteen slaves are executed.

New York declares it illegal for male & female blacks, Indians, and slaves to murder other blacks, Indians, and slaves. And New York forbids freed blacks, Indians, and mulatto slaves from owning real estate and holding property.

In Charleston, South Carolina male & female slaves are forbidden from hiring themselves out.

1713
England's South Sea Company is allowed to transport 4,800 male & female slaves per year into the Spanish colonies of North America.

Queen Anne's War ends with the Treaty of Utrecht.

1714
George I becomes king of England (r. 1714–27).

Tea is introduced for the first time into the American Colonies. 1715 Artist: Henrietta Johnson 1674-1729. Subject: Mary Magdalen Gendron, Mrs Samuel Prioleu 1691-1765

1715
Yamasee tribes attack and kill several hundred male & female Carolina settlers.

Rhode Island legalizes slavery.

Maryland declares all slaves entering the province and their descendants to be slaves for life.

1716
South Carolina settlers and their Cherokee allies attack and defeat the Yamassee.

The first group of black slaves is brought to the Louisiana territory. 1717-18 Artist: Henrietta Johnston 1674-1729. Mary Griffith (Mrs Robert Brewton, Mrs William Loughton) 1698-1761

1717

Scots-Irish immigration begins, with most settling to western Pennsylvania.

New York enacts a fugitive slave law.

1718
French found New Orleans.

The Tuscarora people are defeated in a war with North Carolina colonists. With many of their people killed they move north to live with other Iroquois nations in New York Colony.

Blackbeard, the pirate, is killed, putting an end to pirate raids along the southern colonial coast.

North Carolina’s first free school, endowed by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, opens at Bath. 1719 Artist: Henrietta Johnston 1674-1729. Subject: Judith DuBose (Mrs Joseph Wragg) 1698-1769.

1719-41
The American Weekly Mercury is the first newspaper launched in Philadelphia by Andrew Bradford (1686-1742). It would publish six of Franklin's "Busy-Body Papers" in 1729 and continue publication until 1746.

The Boston Gazette is the second newspaper in Boston is launched by William Brooker (fl. 1715-1720) and printed by Benjamin Franklin's older half-brother, James Franklin (1697-1735). The paper would become the official organ of the government and continue until 1741.
1720 Attributed to Gerrit or Gerardus Duyckinck Subject: Portrait of a Lady

1720 Artist: Gerardus Duyckinck 1695-1746. Subject: Mrs Johannes van Braght b 1673. Her husband was an alderman for the City of New York.

1720
Estimated population of colonies: 475,000. Including Boston (pop. 12,000), Philadelphia (pop. 10,000), and New York (pop. 7000).

A smallpox epidemic in Boston prompts Cotton Mather and Zabdiel Boylston to experiment with inoculation against the disease. Mather had learned of the practice from Onesimus, his slave, who had himself been inoculated as a child and knew inoculation to be a widely accepted medical practice in Africa.
1720-25 Attributed to Schuyler Limner (active ca. 1715–1725) Portrait of a Lady (possibly Tryntje Otten Veeder)

Benjamin Franklin leaves Boston for Philadelphia, a trip that he chronicles in his Autobiography.

South Carolina planters settle along the Lower Cape Fear River and begin developing the rice and naval stores industries. They bring large numbers of enslaved people and establish a large, plantation-style slave system.

Virginia abolishes manumissions.
1720-28 Artist: Gerardus Duyckinck 1695-1746 Subject: Grace Mears, Mrs Moses Levy

1724
The French build forts on the Mississippi, the St. Lawrence, and the Niagara rivers.

French Louisiana prohibits slaves from marrying without the permission of their owners.


The population of male & female black slaves in the American colonies reaches 75,000.


Riots occur in Philadelphia as poor people tear down the pillories and stocks and burn them.
1725 Artist: Charles Bridges 1670-1747. Subject: Evelyn(1708-1737) daughter of William Byrd II and Lucy Parke.

1725
Explanatory Charter of Massachusetts Bay; August 26

1726
Zabdiel Boylston: An Historical Account of the Smallpox Inoculated in New England. Boylston details his experiments with smallpox inoculation in Boston, in which only 6 of his 244 patients die of the disease. This figure compared with the 844 out of 5,757 Bostonians who died of smallpox naturally during the same epidemic. One of the first of its kind written by an American physician.
1727 John Smibert 1688 - 1751. Eleanor Nightengale

1727
George II becomes king of England

Benjamin Franklin founds the Junto Club.

Cadwallader Colden (1688-1776): History of the Five Nations. Colden's greatest achievement is this tribal history of the Iroquois Indians based on firsthand observation.

1728
Elizabeth Hanson (1684-1737) writes God's Mercy Surmounting Man's Cruelty, a polished literary account of Hanson's 1724 capture by the French and Indians. (See Hanson's account on this blog.)

Jewish colonists in New York City build the first American synagogue.
1729 Artist: John Smibert 1688-1751. Subject: Mrs. Tyng.

1729
Benjamin Franklin prints, publishes and largely writes the weekly Pennsylvania Gazette.

See Burt, Daniel S., editor. THE CHRONOLOGY OF AMERICAN LITERATURE: AMERICA'S LITERARY ACHIEVEMENTS FROM THE COLONIAL ERA TO MODERN TIMES. Houghton Mifflin Internet.
Yale Law School, The Avalon Project: Documents in Law, History, and Diplomacy. New Haven, CT.
HISTORY MATTERS. American Social History Project / Center for Media and Learning (Graduate Center, CUNY) and the Center for History and New Media (George Mason University)

18C American Women & their Pet Birds

1758 John Singleton Copley 1738-1815 Portrait of Ann Fairchild Bowler

This is the perfect time to look at paintings of 18C Americans with their birds, both in the wild & captured in aviaries & cages.  We know that native North American birds fascinated men & women alike in 18C British American colonies. Colonials kept cages for their birds. Some even kept larger bird-keeping areas called aviaries.
1718 Nehemiah Partridge (American artist, 1683-1737) Portrait of Catherine Ten Broeck with Bird.

Between 1739 and 1762, South Carolinian Eliza Lucas Pinckney (c 1722-1793) kept a letterbook in which she wrote, "Airry Chorristers pour forth their melody...the mocking bird...inchanted me with his harmony." By this time, enterprising Southerners caged red birds and even exported extra cages of mockingbirds to England.

1721 Attributed to Nehemiah Partridge (American artist, 1683-1737) Sara Gansevoort (1718-1731) with a bird.

An aviary is an enclosed area, often in a garden & larger than a traditional birdcage, meant for keeping, feeding, and hopefully breeding birds.  Aviaries in South Carolina sometimes contained two-story bird houses.
1725 Charles Bridges (American artist, 1670-1747). Detail of William Byrd II & Lucy Parke daughter Evelyn Byrd and a bird in the tree.

Mark Catesby (1682-1749) sailed to Virginia in 1712, and stayed in the British Atlantic colonies for 7 years, sketching & compiling The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands for publication upon his return to England. In his monumental work, he described birds he had seen in the colonies in cages. Thomas Jefferson had a copy of Catesby's History in his library.

1740s-50s Joseph Blackburn (American colonial era artist, 1700-1780) Mrs

Thomas Jones.  The New York Journal published a poem of a woman imagining her ideal garden entitled A Wish of a Lady in 1769.
"...Just under my window I'd fancy a lawn,
Where delicate shrubs shou'd be planted with taste,
And none of my ground be seen running to waste.

Instead of Italians, the Linnet and Thrush
Wou'd with harmony greet me from every bush;
Those gay feather'd songsters do rapture inspire!
What music so soft as the heav'nly choir..."
1733 Gerardus Duyckinck (American artist, 1695-1746). Detail David and Phila Franks with bird.

18C portrait painters in America depicted men, women, & children with birds from the beginning of the century to the end. One question is whether the birds are being used as symbols or are actually birds that they might have owned.

1750 John Hesselius (American colonial artist, 1728-1778) Ann & Sarah Gordon.

Birds were kept as pets around Charleston, South Carolina, when an ad in the South-Carolina Gazette in January of 1753 noted, "ANY Persons willing to try the cultivation of Flax and Hemp in this province, may have gratis a pint of Hemp Seed, and half a pint of Flax Seed, at Mr. Commissary Dart's store in Tradd-Street.—But it's hoped ladies will not send for any Hemp Seed for birds."
1755 John Wollaston (American artist, 1710-1775). Detail Elizabeth Page & Mann Page, children of Mann & Ann Corbin (Tayloe) Page of Rosewell, Gloucester County, with bird.

In February of 1768, James Drummond announced in Charleston's The South Carolina and American General Gazette that he had "just imported...from L(ondon), a large and compleat (Assortment) of GOODS, Among which are the following... men and womens white Italian gloves... corks, an sortment of watchmaker's tools...a bird cage."

1755 Joseph Badger (American artist, 1708-1765). Detail of Elizabeth Gould with bird.

James McCall advertised in the 1771 South Carolina Gazette and Country Journal the he had "just received...a great Variety of Garden Seeds, Pease and Beans; Hemp, Canary, Rape, and Moss Seed for Birds."

1758 John Singleton Copley (American artist, 1738-1815) Mary & Elizabeth Royall with dog and bird.

Baroness Von Riedesel traveling through the British American southern colonies with her officer husband during the American Revolution wrote, "I had brought two gorgeous birds with me from Virginia. The main bird was scarlet with a darker red tuft of feathers on his head, about the size of a bull-finch, and it sang magnificently. The female bird was gray with a red breast and also had a tuft of feathers on its head."
1760 Joseph Badger (American artist, 1708-1765). James Badger with bird.

The Baroness continued, "They are very tame soon after they are caught and eat out of one's hand. These birds live a long time, but if two male birds are hung in the same room they are so jealous of each other that one of them dies soon afterwards."

1760 Joseph Badger (American artist, 1708 - 1765). Detail of Jemima Flucker with bird.

The Baroness related that she, "saw black birds in Virginia of the same size, which always cry 'willow.' This amused us very much because one of my husband's aides was named Willoe."
1763-65 Henry Benbridge (American artist, 1743-1812). Detail of Gordon Family with bird.

The visiting Baroness stated, "One of my servants discovered a whole nest of these red birds and fed and raised them. Knowing how much I loved them, he left Colle with two cages full on his back, but they all died before he reached me, much to our sorrow."
1766-67 John Singleton Copley (American artist, 1738-1815). Detail of Mary Boylston (Mrs Benjamin Hallowell) with bird.

In America, the New-York Magazine; or, Literary Repository of 1792, was advising its readers that, "A Goldfinch must never be let loose in an aviary, for he destroys the nests and breaks the eggs of the other birds."
1766 John Singleton Copley (American artist, 1738-1815). Detail of Elizabeth Ross (Mrs. William Tyng) with bird.

William Faris (1728-1804) was a silversmith & clock-maker living in Annapolis, Maryland, for over 50 years. He kept journals & a diary of his life there, on & off, during the last quarter of the 18C. On October 25, 1793, Faris noted, "Last night the 2 yallow Birds died." Earlier, he had written that his "poor Mocking Bird" had died. Although these are the only references to birds in the diary he kept during the 1790s, his 1804 inventory listed 11 bird cages.

1767 John Singleton Copley (American artist, 1738-1815).Young Lady with a Bird and Dog.

Isaac Weld (1774-1856) noted in his 1800 Travels through the States of North America that at Thomas Jefferson's Monticello in Virginia, "A large apartment is laid out for a library and museum, meant to extend the entire breadth of the house, the windows of which are to open into an extensive greenhouse and aviary."
1770-1775 James Peale (American artist, 1749-1831). Girl with bird.

Margaret Bayard Smith, who was a new bride in Washington DC in 1800, wrote in her diary, "In the window recesses were stands for the flowers and plants which it was his delight to attend and among his roses and geraniums was suspended the cage of his favorite mocking-bird, which he cherished with peculiar fondness, not only for its melodious powers, but for its uncommon intelligence and affectionate disposition, of which qualities he gave surprising instances. It was the constant companion of his solitary and studious hours. Whenever he was alone he opened the cage and let the bird fly about the room. After flitting for a while from one object to another, it would alight on his table and regale him with its sweetest notes, or perch on his shoulder and take its food from his lips. Often when he retired to his chamber it would hop up the stairs after him and while he took his siesta, would sit on his couch and pour forth its melodious strains. How he loved this bird!"

1770 Daniel Hendrickson (American artist, 1723-1788). Detail of Catharine Hendrickson surrounded by birds.

William Dobbs operated a Seed & Plant Store at 315 King street. He advertised in the December 2, 1811 edition of the Charleston Times: "For sale at wholesale and retail, an extensive assortment of Choice Garden Flowers and Bird seeds, the growth of 1811...Garden Tools, Flower Pots, Hyacinth Glasses."  In October 1812, Dobbs property was put up at auction through ads in the October 13 and 22 editions of the Charleston Courier. Among the items to be auctioned, “All the Personal Estate and Stock in Trade...together with his elegant collection of Singing Birds; consisting of Canary and Mocking Birds; a Glass Case, containing stuffed Birds; empty Bird Cages...”  Unfortunately, Dobbs died in the fall of 1812.  His inventory of December 3, 1812, gives a glimpse of the property owned by the seedsman: “Rose Apple Trees, Rosemary, Squills, Double Tube Roses, Amaryths, Peach Trees, 40 Canary Birds, Seeds, Bird Seed, shovels, spades, bird cages, pees, 2 green Houses and glasses, garden tools, Glasses for Roots, Shelves of Jars with Seeds in them...”

1770s Charles Willson Peale (American artist, 1741-1827). Detail Mary Tilghman & sons with bluejay.

In 1748, visitor to the British American colonies, Peter Kalm noted that turkeys, wild geese, pigeons and partridges were often tamed to the extent that “when they were let out in the morning they returned in the evening.”

1788 Charles Willson Peale (American artist, 1741-1827). Detail of Mrs. Richard Gittings with bird in cage.

In 1772, the South-Carolina Gazette carried an ad for a plantation to be rented "on the Ashley River near Charleston" with "two well-contrived aviaries." A year later, the same paper noted a lot in Charlestown which contained, "a very good Two-Story Birds House."

1790 Denison Limner Probably Joseph Steward (American artist, 1753-1822). Detail of Miss Denison of Stonington, CN possibly Matilda with bird and squirrel.  

1790 Rufus Hathaway (American artist, 1770 - 1822). Detail of Molly Wales Fobes with Birds. 
1790s Ellen Sharples (American artist, 1769-1849). Detail of Theodosia Burr of New Jersey with bird.

1796 Charles Willson Peale (American artist, 1741-1827). Thomas Elliott & Grandaughter Deborah Hibernia with white bird.

1790s Unknown American artist, Mary Ann Elizabeth Thum of Philadelphia

1790 Ralph Earl (American artist, 1791-1801) Jerusha Benedict (Ives) with Bird

18C American Woman

1762 Joseph Blackburn fl 1752-1778 Woman Brooklyn

18C American Woman - Mrs Joseph Reade

1749-1752 John Wollaston 1733-1767 Mrs Joseph Reade Met

18C American Woman - Millicent Conway Gordon 1727-1748

1750 John Hesselius 1728-1778 Millicent Conway Gordon1727-1748 Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

Milicent Agatha Conway (1727-1748) was born in Lancaster, Virginia, her father was Edwin Conway

(1681–1763) & her mother was Anne Ball (1686-1764). She married James Gordon III (1714-1768), who was born in Sheepbridge, Newry, Down, Ireland, on March 28, 1742, in Lancaster, Virginia. They had 4 children during their marriage. She died as a young mother on February 2, 1748, in Lancaster, Virginia, at the age of 21. Milicent Conway Gordon was the 1st wife of James Gordon III & the mother of Ann (Nancy) & Sarah (Sallie) Gordon & babies Agatha & a boy who both died as infants.. She died in 1748 indicating that this is a post-mortem portrait of her. Of the 5 Gordon family portraits painted by Hesselius, this is the only one signed & dated on the front of the canvas.

Here Milicent Agatha Conway is portrayed wearing a blue dress with a red underskirt. She has a gold tasseled cord around her waist & pearls at her elbows. Her right hand rests on a table. Her left hand points downwards. A red curtain is on her right & is wrapped around a column & over the top of the table. John Hesselius signed & dated the painting on the right side of the canvas next to her left elbow. See: Carolyn J. Weekley, Painters & Paintings in the Early American South (2013), 255-256.

The Virginia Museum of History & Culture tells us that the, "Gordon portraits depict the family of an Ulster merchant & planter of Scottish origin who emigrated to Lancaster County in 1738. Through trade with merchants in the British Islands & the West Indies, voracious land purchasing, & active public service, James Gordon quickly rose to prominence, which he celebrated in 1751 by commissioning a sizeable group of large, expensive portraits of himself, his successive wives, his 3 children, & his brother who had emigrated with him. Posed in contemporary clothing before grandiose, artificial settings of an outdated 17C portrait tradition, the sitters seem provincial. The commission for the Gordon portraits seems to have resulted simply from the sudden availability in Virginia in 1751 & 1752 of artists John Hesselius or Robert Feke. Both appeared in the colony at this time..."

Artist John Hesselius (1728-1778) was one of the major American-born artists working in the Middle Colonies & the South in the third quarter of the 18C. The son of Gustavus Hesselius (1682-1755), a Swedish portrait painter who came to America in 1711.  His father was Gustavus Hesselius painted mostly in Maryland & Pennsylvania. John was probably born in Philadelphia. His earliest signed work is dated 1750.  It seems likely that Gustavus Hesselius was John Hesselius’s first instructor. John Hesselius also studied with Robert Feke & his early portraits are stylistically more similar to Feke’s. Hesselius latest signed work dates to 1777.

During his career, Hesselius traveled extensively in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, & possibly in New Jersey. His work seems to have been confined to portraits. All known examples are in oil on canvas, & there is little reason to suspect that he deviated from this practice. He worked exclusively in the late English Baroque & English Rococo traditions of painting, & his style shows the influence of Robert Feke & John Wollaston more strongly than that of his father.

Hesselius married Mary Young Woodward, the widow of Henry Woodward, in 1763, & after that date his energies were divided between his art & the management of his plantation near Annapolis, Maryland. He was also active in the religious affairs of St. Anne’s Parish in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. His interests appear to have been many, & as an artist & landowner he associated with most of the leading citizens of the colony. Hesselius contributed to American painting, & he extended & modified the English tradition of painting in the Colonies.