Photo Hunters: Hands

28 Mar

Gerrit Smith and Wife

These sculpted hands of marble were formed sometime in the mid-1800s, by a freed slave. They are the hands of famous abolitionist (and former Congressman and presidential candidate of the old Liberty Party) Gerrit Smith, intertwined with those of his beloved wife, Ann Carroll Fitzhugh. The freedman sculpted this as a labor of love for Gerrit Smith. The Smiths were fervent abolitionists, and Gerrit Smith was called the Stationmaster of the Underground Railroad. He gave money, much of his property, and a life of sacrifice, to runaway slaves and to the abolitionist movement in this country.

This sculpture was in the Smith’s house in Peterboro, NY, for years until a house fire destroyed their home. The sculpture was one of the things saved in the fire, and was brought to the home in 1936 of the Higinbothams of Oneida, NY, family friends of the Smiths. The Higinbotham home is now the Madison County Historical Society. We visited the place a few weeks ago, and I’ve been writing several posts about the wonderful treasures in the house. You can read more about it here.

Here’s a bit of trivia: The Smiths’ grandson, Gerrit Smith Miller, introduced the first herd of Holstein into America when he brought back cows from Prussia!

89 Responses to “Photo Hunters: Hands”

  1. C. Michael Cox 28. Mar, 2009 at 8:11 pm #

    Nice photo and interesting history. Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment. From your profile you seem like a very busy person.

  2. Gmirage 28. Mar, 2009 at 8:13 pm #

    What an interesting tale that comes with them! Beautiful even if this is the only piece left…Happy weekend!

  3. Anna 28. Mar, 2009 at 8:26 pm #

    Wow! Beautiful shot and a nice story behind it :)

    Have a great weekend!

  4. liz 28. Mar, 2009 at 8:40 pm #

    a beautiful sculpture and wonderful history!

  5. Rachel @ the schience of music 28. Mar, 2009 at 8:43 pm #

    Love the photo and the story, as always!

    Thanks for stopping by.

  6. Leslie 28. Mar, 2009 at 9:08 pm #

    Wonderful photo of the sculpture! Have a great weekend. :)

  7. MJPhoto 28. Mar, 2009 at 9:24 pm #

    Oooh nice hands…and they look so nice and cool :)

  8. Lisa 28. Mar, 2009 at 10:09 pm #

    I think this is one of the most beautifull pieces of art that I have seen in a long time
    and it fits perfect with the theme this week!

  9. healingmagichands 28. Mar, 2009 at 11:05 pm #

    What a wonderful combination of beauty and history. I enjoyed my visit here, as always.

  10. JyLnC 28. Mar, 2009 at 11:29 pm #

    Beautiful sculpture, story, and photo. Thank you for visiting my photo hunt this week.

  11. TorAa 29. Mar, 2009 at 12:03 am #

    I see the love and warmth in these hands.
    Excellent entry

  12. ramblingwoods 29. Mar, 2009 at 12:29 am #

    That is beautiful..

  13. kaye 29. Mar, 2009 at 1:31 am #

    lovely picture, and so unique, thanks for visiting

  14. ann 29. Mar, 2009 at 1:36 am #

    Perfect for the theme! Beautiful hands!

  15. Audrey 29. Mar, 2009 at 2:31 am #

    Hi! Great photohunt. And no, Henna tattoo’s are not permanent.

  16. Napaboaniya APAD 29. Mar, 2009 at 3:13 am #

    Too lovely for words :)

  17. Samantha & Mr. Tigger 29. Mar, 2009 at 3:40 am #

    That is a beautiful pair of HANDS!! And thanks for sharing the story of them for us!! Have a nice weekend!
    Your FL furiends,
    and Maverick

  18. Kerri 29. Mar, 2009 at 4:00 am #

    what a beautiful photo and the story to go with it!!

  19. Arlene 29. Mar, 2009 at 4:14 am #

    nice one! sign of being together – forever!

    thanks for the visit at my entry.

  20. Lew 29. Mar, 2009 at 4:27 am #

    Nice shot for the theme!

  21. julie 29. Mar, 2009 at 4:39 am #

    This is wonderful! :)

  22. girasoli 29. Mar, 2009 at 4:47 am #

    Beautiful hands. Perfect for this week’s theme.

  23. Carin 29. Mar, 2009 at 7:40 am #

    Beautiful sculpture! Just read a book about the underground railroad. It was wonderfully written and the story was very touching. I feel great respect for abolisionists! Never heard of that word before.

  24. ian 29. Mar, 2009 at 10:59 am #

    i love the weekly history lesson ably aided by your wonderful pictures =] have a great week ahead! safe journeys always!

  25. Jerry 29. Mar, 2009 at 12:16 pm #

    Great choice for this week’s theme!

  26. Patricia (Pollywog Creek) 29. Mar, 2009 at 4:25 pm #

    How lovely – and so interesting, too. I love your travel blog, Mrs. Mecomber.

  27. Kelly 29. Mar, 2009 at 5:52 pm #

    I had to get new a new antivirus program yesterday so I didn’t to visit yesterday.
    Love it!

    I played too!

  28. Pat 29. Mar, 2009 at 6:59 pm #

    Beautiful and love the history!!

    Have a good week.

  29. Brita 29. Mar, 2009 at 8:03 pm #

    Beautiful shot !
    Thanks for visiting too.

  30. PastormacsAnn 29. Mar, 2009 at 8:09 pm #

    Woah! I doesn’t get much better than this for The Photo Hunt this week!! Nice job!

  31. Sniffie and the Florida Furkids 29. Mar, 2009 at 10:52 pm #

    Great picture for the theme and a great story behind it!!

    Sniffie and the Florida Furkids

  32. tokenhippygirl 30. Mar, 2009 at 12:35 am #

    Nice shot… another excellent bit of history to go with.

  33. Ladynred 30. Mar, 2009 at 12:51 am #

    Great history of the hands and it’s beautiful.

  34. upto6only 30. Mar, 2009 at 2:36 am #

    wow beautiful sculpture of the hands.

  35. annie 30. Mar, 2009 at 1:05 pm #

    Very beautiful and inspiring! Thanks for visiting mine and have a great week.

  36. Rach (Heart of Rachel)f 31. Mar, 2009 at 3:33 am #

    That’s a beautiful sculpture.

  37. Fhaye 31. Mar, 2009 at 3:49 am #

    So lovely!

  38. Chikai 01. Apr, 2009 at 4:51 am #

    this is a nice memorabilia and i like the story behind it. tfs!

    btw, thanks for checking out my entry. see yah next saturday! :)

  39. Digital Polaroids 04. Apr, 2009 at 12:05 pm #

    Very good!

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