What’s New at RiverWoods

John Wesley Little Art Exhibit Displayed at Packwood House Museum

October 5, 2006

The Packwood House Museum in Lewisburg has been featuring an art exhibit of John Wesley Little (1867-1923), A Distiller of Nature, from September 19 and will continue until November 4.

Born on August 24, 1867 near Forksville, Pennsylvania, John began his formal art education at the age of 21 at the National Academy of Design in New York City.  There, he took classes from the formative American artist Thomas Eakins, whose teaching philosophy stirred controversy at the time. 

Little was a frequent international traveler who met with various artists and loved visiting museums and art galleries.  While spending four weeks in Lauren, he was influenced by the works of Anton Mauve, a Dutch painter of landscapes and farm animals.  It was here that he learned the technique of painting sheep and how to capture their characteristic grouping.  Ever since then, sheep were among his favorite subjects.

He also painted a great deal of landscapes, inspired by English landscape painter, Sir Alfred East.  When John permanently moved his family to Picture Rocks in 1906, they moved onto a fifty plus acre farm bordered by Muncy Creek so he could paint his adored valley of Muncy Creek from North Mountain to Susquehanna River.

In 1913, Little was contacted by Rena Frankeberger, Supervisor of Art in the Williamsport Schools, to decorate one of the school buildings.  She offered him space in the Franklin Elementary School to paint three murals representing a typical Susquehanna River landscape scene, which became a major work of art.  The murals remained at the school for several years.

In later years, John Wesley Little became one of Picture Rocks’ leading citizens.  He felt a sense of responsibility and took a leadership role in bettering the community.  Little became burgess of the town in 1909, when he came forward with the slogan, “Keep Your Town Clean,” which brought about a general tidiness and more sanitary living conditions still true of the town today.  According to Dr. Paul M. Pearson, a friend of John’s, his most exceptional trait was the desire to be a “genuine host to those who visited his community.”

Little died at his home on September 27, 1923 of pernicious anemia at the age of 56.  Surviving him were two daughters, a son, and his wife.  A good deal of his artwork can be found displayed at Bucknell University, where many members of his family went to college and where his wife, Susan, became a housemother in one of the women’s dormitories.  Other works can be found at the Sandmeyer residence, in the Williamsport Museum, and with other various community and family members.

Dot and Bill Sandmeyer, residents of RiverWoods Senior Living Community, are relatives of John Wesley Little; he was Dot’s great uncle.

Packwood House Museum is among the oldest log-built structures of its kind in Pennsylvania, originally constructed as a two-story log cabin between 1796 and 1799. As a tavern and hotel throughout much of the 19th century, the building served travelers in the Susquehanna Valley until 1886.  The museum will be hosting a lecture on the art of John Wesley Little on Saturday, October 21 at 4 p.m.  Admission is free for members of the museum; otherwise, it is $6 for adults, $5 for senior citizens, $3 for students, and free for children 12 years of age and younger. 

For more information on the Little art exhibit or the Packwood House Museum, please call (570) 524-0323 or visit www.packwoodhousemuseum.com.