Wells Fargo Pony Express Assay Office Mining Folsom George Mathis Print 1970s
Fresh estate find, never framed, beautifully hand water colored.
Condition is Great and Clean. Image Size, 10” X 14”, sheet size 11.5 X 16.5"
Palmer and Day were California Assayers. The pair began in Folsom in 1860 where Palmer established an assay office and Wells Fargo Express office. In April of 1860 the Palmer and Day assay office also became the terminus for the Pony Express.
I have sold at least 40 George Mathis pieces of art on ebay over the last fifteen years, I am also a collector of his works. I am always looking for a new pieces for my collection or to sell in my store. Buying a piece from me you are assured and guaranteed of authenticity.
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From an old Friday
House Gallery Brochure
“About the Prints, There’s
always a bit of confusion concerning the manner in which a two-dimensional
piece of art is reproduced. The term “print” can be correct when used with
serigraphy, etching, lithography or offset reproduction.
The “prints” at
Friday House Gallery are offset reproductions from an original pencil sketch
and are reproduced in an unlimited number most often.
An original pencil
sketch on paper or illustration board is photographed on a process camera,
producing a negative from which the plate is made. That plate goes on our
offset printing press and multiple prints are made whenever needed. The way you
can tell the difference between and offset reproduction and a true lithograph,
serigraph, etching, etc, is to look at the piece under magnification… if there
is a mechanical dot pattern (like the photos in a newspaper) it is an offset
reproduction in all common cases. Many reproductions today are touted as
“lithographs” when in reality they are offset reproductions.
Our prints are
printed by the family in the gallery’s workshop. They are printed in black ink
on white paper. These are then titled and signed in pencil (a studio signature)
to extend the artists touch.”
“About the original
pencil sketches, George Mathis created more than 200 pencil sketches focusing
on California past. These remain in the Mathis family collection and are not
available for purchase” Note now in the collection is at Washington State University.
George Mathis Pictorial Historian of the Mother Lode.
George Mathis was generally and affectionately known as the
“pictorial historian of the Mother lode”. Because of his interest in the
history of the Gold County area, his desire to be authentic and his exceptional
talent, the title was well deserved. Pictorial illustrations became his
greatest talent and reflected in his original lithographs and prints from his
original pencil sketches. The proofs from the original lithographs were
from stone presses but were engraved at the site on a stone substitute.
The Miners cabin a favorite subject
delighting children and adults. On a Sunday afternoon in the artist’s
studio, George would sketch one of these for visitor, telling a story while he
drew a miner’s cabin… a white cat in the doorway waiting for his master, smoke
coming from the chimney because there were beans cooking on the back of the
stove, a nest of birds, and a few clumps of granite. The sketch took just
minute and then was presented to the youngest member of the family. It
was not unusual to receive a child’s version of a miner’s cabin sketch as a
return gift. The cabin sketch was developed to show how the technique
worked. George made it look easy.
About the Water Colors: Spokane, Washington is the
birthplace of Jean Mathis. She became a Californian later at the age of
19 where her talent for marionette construction and theater led her to conducting
classes at one of Oakland’s department stores. Jean attended art school
part time and here a romance with fellow art student, George Mathis,
developed. Jean and George married in 1963-a marriage that resulted in a
bipartisan art and craft-continuing through the years. Jean has a deft
touch for many activities. She was once a linotypes and columnist for a
newspaper, designed domestic architecture, and one of her doll designs won
national recognition in McCall’s Magazine. There’s a special gift for dried
flower arrangements, ceramic modeling and costume design. Watercolor
excellence was accomplishment developed to compliment her husband’s historical
illustrations. These watercolored subjects have become one of the west’s
most popular records of western history. The heritage is Currier and Ives
but George/Jeans Mathis results are a dimension of their own for collector or
history fan.
Author Note: (On some prints one might see in the
lower right corner the writing W/C, J. M. this means that Jean Mathis
handcolored that print.)
Sketching The Mines: George’s love affair with mountains was
enhanced when he moved to Nevada City. Here he could combine his talent
with his bent on history while he explored high places. The Northern
Mines were a bonanza he sketched his way through them. Young American
Mine on Sardine Lake only offered exciting remnants of history but the majestic
Sierras were the back drop- a place to recapture the aura of the fabulous gold
rush era. Old Kentucky Mine, on the skirts of Sierra City, is now a
museum but when George was there [50] years ago Sierra City boosted two bars
and one old time hotel. Now it has been discovered. Yuba River
County could be any spot along a mountain river but this abandoned mine shaft
is just south of Downieville. Settlements mushroomed near any gold
strike-some lived and grew but most faded into history. Alleghany, still
just a wide spot off a cliff-side road, was the scene of great expectations in
the 1850’s. The Empire Mine in Grass Valley and Ott’s Assay Office in
Nevada City were among the first subjects for George’s sketch pad. It was
after he moved to Coloma that he discovered the stamp mill site of Ruck a
Chucky Mine and noted sadly that some time would demolish one of the last
visual reminders of this once famous territory north of Georgetown. La
Compton Mine in Nevada City, Last Mine on Main Street and Chinese at the Mines
were researched and sketched from old photographs and engravings.
Sketching in the Foothills: Historians record the excitement
of the gold rush days but mostly he remembered the mountains and the foothills
were these events took place. It was early in June when George sketched
the Sierra Buttes for Bassett’s Station background was the snow still topping
these lovely peaks. While Edwards crossing now has a modern bridge and
carries station wagons instead of freight wagons-the surroundings remain the
same. Thirty years ago when visiting Bridgeport Bridge there was not a
person in sight. Not one car went by while George sketched. In 1952
the road to Bodie left much to be desired. Bodie had yet to become a
tourist attraction. Just a blowing wind broke the silence of this ghost
town. Carol and George climbed about the cliffs above Donner Lake to locate
the trail where the covered wagons come over the pass.
Sketching the Railroads: Most of the historic trains that
George sketched were researched from old photographs; Jean remembers a trip
they took to a lonesome spot in the Nevada desert where the Virginia
&Truckee bullion car sat on a barren hilltop. In 1952 they went to
Sierra Valley to sketch the Shay and caboose nestling in the fringe of grass.
(Print is Abandoned Rail Equipment 1952) George’s attention to detail is
reflected in his statement, “If I don’t put in every nut and bolt, some train
buff will surely point out the omission.”
The Historical, Old Buildings: It was around 1945 when
George began sketching the gold country. As they traveled the foothills,
a feeling of urgency grew-a need to record as many old buildings as possible
before time, weather and the march of progress destroyed these places.
George often found himself just one step ahead of the bulldozer. The
tendency at the time was to tear down and replace them with modern structures.
Certainly too many historic buildings suffered this fate. When they went
to Sierra City, years ago, the town consisted of boarded up buildings, two bars
and one hotel. Now it thrives as a popular vacation resort. Old
Kentucky Mine stood decaying for years. It has now been turned into a
museum with plans to make it a working museum to demonstrate the processing of
ore. The lawless atmosphere of the gold rush days may be missing but the
flavor of the 1800’s is still there. Nevada City is one of the best examples
of careful restoration. The National Hotel, Ott’s Assay Office, American
Victorian Museum, The Marsh House and many fine Victorian homes are just a few
of the places well worth mentioning. Old structures now in the gold
country cities, towns and state parks are restored or in the process of
restoration.
SOURCE: A Catalogue of George Mathis Country offering over
100 prints & lithographs of the historic west 1980s. (8/20/2012)