--- id: cc1253a9-0ceb-4d91-9523-1cf1c9618c58 title: 'Albert Newsam: American Lithographer and Painter' abstract: "Albert Newsam (1809\u20131864) was an American lithographer and painter\ \ who was born deaf and orphaned in Ohio. He studied at the Pennsylvania School\ \ for the Deaf and became an early practitioner of lithography in the United States.\ \ Newsam is known for his contributions to medical and sheet music books, as well\ \ as his portrait work of prominent politicians, doctors, lawyers, and businessmen." classification: primary: '75' secondary: - '76' - '371.9' - '361.3' udc_main_class: '7' tags: - Albert Newsam - Lithography - American Art - Painter - Deaf History - 19th Century topics: - Art History - Biography - Disability History author: '' created_at: '2026-06-01T00:20:05.605253' updated_at: '2026-06-01T02:13:50.135984' sources: - type: url uri: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Newsam format: url_fetch udc_label: Painting, paintings version: '1' --- ## Card: Albert Newsam: American Lithographer and Painter Albert Newsam (1809–1864) was an American lithographer and painter who was born deaf and orphaned in Ohio. He studied at the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf and became an early practitioner of lithography in the United States. Newsam is known for his contributions to medical and sheet music books, as well as his portrait work of prominent politicians, doctors, lawyers, and businessmen. ## Classification Primary: 75 | Secondary: 76, 371.9, 361.3 | Tags: Albert Newsam, Lithography, American Art, Painter, Deaf History, 19th Century | Topics: Art History, Biography, Disability History ## Content Albert Newsam - Wikipedia Jump to content Main menu Main menu move to sidebar hide Navigation Main page Contents Current events Random article About Wikipedia Contact us Contribute Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file Special pages Search Search Appearance Donate Create account Log in Personal tools Donate Create account Log in Contents move to sidebar hide (Top) 1 Early life and education 2 Career 3 Later life, death, and legacy 4 Further reading 5 References 6 External links Toggle the table of contents Albert Newsam 2 languages Deutsch Simple English Edit links Article Talk English Read Edit View history Tools Tools move to sidebar hide Actions Read Edit View history General What links here Related changes Upload file Permanent link Page information Cite this page Get shortened URL Print/export Download as PDF Printable version In other projects Wikimedia Commons Wikidata item Appearance move to sidebar hide From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia American lithographer and painter (1809–1864) Not to be confused with Albert Newsome . Albert Newsam Albert Newsam, circa 1850 Born ( 1809-05-20 ) May 20, 1809 Steubenville, Ohio , U.S. Died November 20, 1864 (1864-11-20) (aged 55) Wilmington, Delaware , U.S. Resting place Laurel Hill Cemetery , Philadelphia, Pennsylvania , U.S. Education Pennsylvania School for the Deaf Known for Engraving Albert Newsam (May 20, 1809 – November 20, 1864) was an American lithographer and painter. He was born deaf in Steubenville, Ohio , and orphaned as a small child. He displayed artistic talent at an early age, was brought to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and studied at the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf . He was an early practitioner of lithography in the United States and contributed numerous images to medical and sheet music books. His portrait work of prominent politicians, doctors, lawyers and businessmen raised the prominence of lithography in the United States. Early life and education [ edit ] Newsam was born in Steubenville, Ohio, on May 20, 1809, to William Newsam and an unknown mother. [ 1 ] He was born deaf and orphaned when his father drowned when Newsam was a small child. [ 2 ] [ 3 ] He was taken in by a local hotel owner, Thomas Hamilton. [ 4 ] Newsam displayed artistic talent at an early age through chalk and pencil sketches. [ 5 ] When Newsam was ten years old, a William P. Davis stayed at Harrison's hotel while passing through town and took note of Newsam's artistic talent. Davis portrayed himself as a fellow deaf mute and convinced Harrison that he would take Newsam and provide for him. [ 6 ] Davis took Newsam to Philadelphia . He presented Newsam as his brother and capitalized on his artistic ability to collect charitable donations. [ 7 ] In Philadelphia, Newsam captured the attention of Bishop William White through a chalk drawing on a police box outside of the boarding house where he was staying. [ 8 ] Bishop White was the president of the newly founded Pennsylvania School for the Deaf , [ 9 ] and obtained a spot for Newsam at the school. [ 10 ] Newsam attended from 1820 to 1826 [ 11 ] as a ward of the state [ 12 ] and trained under George Catlin . [ 13 ] Davis left Newsam behind at the institution, purportedly to travel to Richmond, Virginia to search for other relatives, and was not seen again. [ 14 ] Career [ edit ] An Advertisement for P.S. Duval including Newsam's Lithography He started an engraving apprenticeship in 1827 under the tutelage of Cephas G. Childs and was taught the art of engraving on copper. Pendleton's Lithography had moved their operations from Boston to Philadelphia and began a business under the name Pendleton, Kearney and Childs. [ 15 ] They began to implement lithography into the business and hired P.S. Duval from Europe to implement the technique. Newsam learned the technique of drawing upon stone from Duval and became renowned for his portraiture. [ 16 ] Newsam's work was first published by Childs starting in 1829. [ 10 ] Newsam is credited with raising the prominence of lithography in the United States. [ 3 ] Childs left the business in 1835 and Newsam continued to work for the successor organization, Lehman & Duval which became P.S. Duval in 1837. [ 13 ] Newsam specialized in portraits, which he painted and also etched on stone to make lithographs . His portrait subjects included doctors, judges, lawyers and local merchants. His political subjects include eight Pennsylvania governors from George Wolf through William F. Packer and fifteen U.S. Presidents from George Washington through James Buchannan . He often copied from the work of other painters including Henry Inman , Charles Bird King , Gilbert Stuart and Thomas Sully . [ 3 ] His lithograph of a portrait of David Crockett painted by Samuel Stillman Osgood was published in 1834 with the endorsement underneath that it was the "only correct likeness that has been taken of me." [ 17 ] Newsam's lithograph of the 1854 Monument to Thomas Galludet in Hartford, Connecticut He created images for Thomas McKenney and James Hall for their book History of the Indian Tribes of North American . [ 13 ] He also created landscapes, medical illustrations and images for sheet music . [ 3 ] His images were included in medical books published in Philadelphia including Treatise on Operative Surgery , Series of Anatomical Plates and A Theoretical and Practical Treatise on the Diseases of the Skin . [ 3 ] He created images of a locomotive for William Norris . [ 13 ] In 1853 an exhibition of designs for the monument in Hartford, Connecticut of the educator of the deaf, Thomas Galludet was held. A design by Newsam was accepted along with a picture by John Carlin . Carlin and Newsam were present at the monument's dedication on September 6, 1854. At the age of 44, Newsam also turned to oil painting. In 1855 he became a student of the portrait painter R. J. Lambdin, but he was no longer able to use his new knowledge extensively due to his health worsening. [ 18 ] Later life, death, and legacy [ edit ] His eyesight started to decline in 1857. [ 13 ] In 1859, Newsam suffered a stroke and one side of his body was paralyzed. [ 19 ] This affected his ability to work, and ended his career. He had limited savings and he was hospitalized at the Blockley Almshouse until 1862. Friends were able to raise funds and move him to the Living Home for the Sick and Well near Wilmington, Delaware . He died on November 20, 1864, [ 20 ] and was interred at Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia. [ 21 ] A collection of his prints is held by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania . [ 3 ] Further reading [ edit ] Lang, Harry G. Deaf Persons in the Arts and Sciences: A Biographical Dictionary . Westport: Greenwood Publishing Group (1995). pp. 274–276. ISBN   0313291705 References [ edit ] Citations ^ Pyatt 1868 , pp. 7–8. ^ Pyatt 1868 , pp. 8–9. ^ a b c d e f "Albert Newsam Print Collection (V-100)" (PDF) . Historical Society of Pennsylvania . Retrieved January 2, 2014 . ^ Pyatt 1868 , p. 9. ^ Pyatt 1868 , pp. 13–14. ^ Pyatt 1868 , p. 17. ^ Pyatt 1868 , pp. 18–19. ^ Jackson, Joseph (1918). Market Street Philadelphia - The Most Historic Highway in America - Its Merchants and Its Stories . Philadelphia: Joseph Jackson. pp.  88– 89 . Retrieved November 5, 2023 . ^ Pyatt 1868 , p. 20. ^ a b "Pennsylvania Institution for the Deaf and Dumb" . The Library Company of Philadelphia . World Digital Library . Retrieved January 2, 2014 . ^ Pyatt 1868 , p. 35. ^ Pyatt 1868 , p. 23. ^ a b c d e "Newsam, Albert" . www.digitallibrarycompany.org . The Library Company of Philadelphia . Retrieved November 6, 2023 . ^ Pyatt 1868 , pp. 21–22. ^ Pennell, Joseph; Pennell, Elizabeth Robins (1898). Lithography & Lithographers - Some Chapters in the History of the Art . New York: The Century Co. p. 248 . Retrieved November 5, 2023 . ^ Stauffer 1901 , p. 7. ^ Tyler, Ron (2023). Texas Lithographs - A Century of History in Images . Austin, TX: University of Texas Press. pp.  30– 31. ISBN   978-1-4773-2608-4 . Retrieved November 5, 2023 . ^ Pyatt 1868 , pp. 91. ^ Stauffer 1901 , p. 8. ^ Stauffer 1901 , p. 9. ^ Pyatt 1868 , pp. 136–137. Sources Pyatt, Joseph O. (1868). Memoir of Albert Newsam, (Deaf Mute Artist) . Jas. B. Rodgers. Stauffer, D. McN. (1901). Lithographic Portraits of Albert Newsam . External links [ edit ] Wikimedia Commons has media related to Albert Newsam . Albert Newsam at Find a Grave Authority control databases International ISNI VIAF FAST WorldCat National United States Artists ULAN Scientific illustrators Other IdRef SNAC Yale LUX Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Albert_Newsam&oldid=1356090239 " Categories : 1809 births 1864 deaths Painters from Ohio 19th-century American male artists 19th-century American painters 19th-century American lithographers American artists with disabilities American deaf people American portrait artists Artists from Philadelphia Burials at Laurel Hill Cemetery (Philadelphia) Deaf artists Painters from Philadelphia People from Steubenville, Ohio 19th-century American engravers Hidden categories: Articles with short description Short description is different from Wikidata Use mdy dates from May 2021 Articles with hCards Commons category link is on Wikidata This page was last edited on 25 May 2026, at 17:56  (UTC) . Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy . Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. , a non-profit organization. Privacy policy About Wikipedia Disclaimers Contact Wikipedia Legal & safety contacts Code of Conduct Developers Statistics Cookie statement Mobile view Search Search Toggle the table of contents Albert Newsam 2 languages Add topic ## Source - url: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Newsam