Young Woman in a Blue Dress by John Krimmel

This small portrait of a woman was painted by John Krimmel, dated March 5, 1815. This painting is in the book, “John Lewis Krimmel, Genre Artist of the Early Republic”, by Anneliese Harding. Anneliese used a diary that was kept by artist John Krimmel on his travels.

 John was born 1786 in Germany and traveled to Philadelphia in 1809. One of his excursions was to the Lehigh Valley, including Easton, Pa. John Krimmel traveled to Easton and the area in 1813, sketching and painting a few landscapes of Easton. 

The watercolor painting is of a young woman with reddish brown hair. She is wearing a blue dress with white lace collar, sleeves and bodice. She has two bracelets on along with earrings. One hand is showing and one is not. Early paintings depicting only one hand usually meant she was betrothed or married. It is possible the woman is also pregnant. She is seated on an ornate chair or sofa in a house with a partial window showing. The scene from the window is of a tree (closer) and in the background a bridge. 

This bridge is the Finley Bridge/Chain Bridge (now Third St. Bridge) that Abraham Horn Sr. built in 1811. Krimmel had earlier, painted a scene of the Lehigh River with the same tree and the Finley Bridge in the distance. 

It was not unusual for people to hire artists to paint a portrait of a family member, along with a building that they were closely connected to. Frederick Bond III, a local art appraiser and art historian was the person who brought this detail to our attention.

 For this reason, it would make sense that the portrait could be the relative of Abraham Horn Sr. Susan Gertrude Margaret Horn, daughter of Abraham Sr. and Susanna (Hay), would be the right age. Susan was born March 1794 in Easton. On November 14, 1812 she married Jacob Bassler. It is believed that this portrait was sketched around early September 1813 with the finish on March 5, 1815. Susan would have been pregnant with her son Reuben Hay Bassler, born September 18, 1813. Her father’s bridge would have been important to Abraham and also put into the painting. Frederick also believes Susan may be seated in her parents home. This home may have been situated on the south side of the Lehigh River, what was then considered Williams Township and is now South Easton.