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Authentic Bellamy Eagles,

Signs, & Folk  Carvings


See page 2    and 3 for more carvings. 
Signs and Quarterboards
here
Whales, Fish, Pineapples, Roosters, and other critters 
Here
Here is a list of carvings that are available for immediate shipment.   Price list
See Finishing options here

Payment terms:  Half due at time of order; Remainder, plus shipping, is due when the carving is completed.  Postal rates increase significantly for carvings longer than 36 inches.
   Orders for new carvings will be completed as soon as possible, depending on backlog. Average wait time is 3 months.

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William Francis Brown

FineFurniture

434-907-5427

dei.gratia123@gmail.com

Isaiah 40:31

Bellamy Eagles

  • Ca. 1860-1910

  • Based on John Halley Bellamy's famous eagles carved in Kittery, Maine and Portsmouth, NH

  • Originals sell at auction for $500,000-600,000!

  • ​Finish options:  Unfinished, Genuine 24k Gold-leaf, antiqued gold leaf, antique stain 

  • Banners can be personalized

  • Prices vary according to size (typically 2 - 5 feet lengths), finish, and complexity

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Kittery Eagle

  • Based on Bellamy, ca. 1875

  • 4 feet span;  can be made to any size

  • Gold-leaf

  • Cover feature of Early American Life Magazine, Aug. 2018

  • $2800 3 foot; $3600 4 foot (other prices according to size); 

The ForestAlexander Litvinovsky
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  • Hand carved, gold leafed, painted, finished & signed by award winning craftsman, William Francis Brown in Camden, Maine

  • Named "Top 20 American Master Craftsman" by Early American Life Magazine each year from 2018 to present

  • 36 inch wing span

  • Authentic and accurate to the originals.  These eagles are an investment that will increase in value.

  • Each eagle requires 75-150 hours of work

  • 23- 24 karat Gold leaf;  I can create any degree of antique aged look if desired

  • Banners can be personalized if desired

  • Eagles are a tasteful, historic accent for over a doorway, outside entry, barn, kitchen, or in any room of your house

  • 2-4 months average backlog time for new eagles

  • How to compare eagles: Authenticity to originals, depth of carving, painting quality, banners, and quality of fine detail

  • Eagle pictured to left is Available for immediate shipment

What the clients say:

"Bill, this is absolutely stunning!  I love what you've done.  The eagle is perfect"

"Your beautiful work of artistry and patriotism will lend history and truth to my study, while inspiring my family, friends, and future generations."

       -S.F.,  Nantucket, Mass.

_________________________________________

"I received the Resolute Eagle this afternoon and it exceeds all expectations. 

I reached out to you after researching Bellamy Eagles for several months, probably closer to a year; and subsequently after seeing your work on the Internet, including Facebook and your Line and Berry website.

So, I knew what to expect to an extent based on your previous Bellamy Eagles, though that said, I was overwhelmed when I opened the custom-made crate today.

I embraced the view with adoration for several moments though had to walk away because it was too much to take in. The eagle is a beautiful piece of American folk art, I have never seen anything quite like it before. The white eagle is simply majestic on its own, and with the shield and the banner featuring my own words, it was a moment that I was ill prepared for. 

     I will be sure to feature it in the coming days or weeks on my website and my Instagram page.

I truly appreciate our engagement throughout the process as I think that is what made the experience even more memorable.  I appreciate you and appreciate your carving craft.

Thank you, Bill, for the absolutely beautiful work of art. It will adorn my home for the rest of my days."

 

Respectfully, 

     -RL

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I can carve and personalize your eagle:
any size or design

Price range for a 'classic' eagle (similar to this one):  $3500 for 3 foot span;     $4000 4 foot;      $4600 5 foot

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'In God We Trust'  Bellamy Eagle, ca 1895

  •      30-32 inch span, Gold leaf  $4000

  •      34-36 inch, 24k Gold leaf $4,500

  • Can carve any banner with wording that fits in the space

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"Faith, Hope, Charity"  Bellamy Eagle

  • 32 inch span

  • Gold leaf stars and stripes

  • $2800:  Available for immediate shipment

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  • "Sic, Semper, Tyrannis"

  • "Thus always to tyrants"

  • Classic Bellamy eagle- true to the originals

  • 25 to 30 inch span (wider will increase cost)

  • Gold leaf

  • Virginia state motto or slogan of your choice

  • Hand-painted banner and shield

  • ​$2500;  Available for immediate shipment

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'Soaring' Bellamy Eagle

  •  ca 1890, Kittery, Maine

  • 26 inch span, 11 inches tall

  • $3000:  Available for immediate shipment

  • Burnished gold leaf

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'The Lord is my Shepherd' 

  • Classic Bellamy Eagle, ca 1875

  • Gold leaf, 27 inch span

  • $2500: Available for immediate shipment

  • Banner wording can be personalized

  • I can make all of my eagles in any width desired:  price will vary by size (amount of gold leaf is primary determinant)

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36 inch Bellamy eagle, ca 1890

  • 24 karat Gold leaf,

  • $3,500 for 3 foot span; $4,000 4 foot;   $4,600 5 foot

 'Liberty and Justice' Bellamy Eagle, ca 1875

  •      36 inch span; 23 karat gold leaf

  •      $ 3000

  •      I can personalize banner wording

  •      This one available for immediate                     shipment

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This is my "Classic Bellamy" eagle.  
Gold leaf has been lightly burnished to decrease the sheen.  my eagles can be made any size desired and "aged" or antiqued to any degree, from shiny & bright to original 150 year old look

Classic Bellamy Eagle, ca 1880

  •    27 inch span

  •    $1800

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5 foot Bellamy Eagle

 

  • Gold Leaf

  • Customized banner with your words

  • Can make to any size

  • $3500 for 3 foot span; $4000 4 foot; $4600 5 foot

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  • 36 inch span

  • $3,000

  • lightly Antiqued Gold leaf

  • Green banner

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  • "Bless This House"

  • Original eagle

  • in Bellamy style

  • 36 inch span

  • Gold leaf

  • $6,500

  • Available for immediate

  •              shipment

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Above:  With banner

Below:  Without banner

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  • Dimensions:  48 in inches wide (4 feet long) x 8 inches high; can make to any size

  • Antique stain matches the original

  • This eagle is an exact copy of an original Bellamy that I carved for a client in NH.  I am happy to carve another one.

  • $ 4500 for 4 foot;  Price will vary with size

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  • Selected for the 2018 Directory of top 200 American Craftsmen the past 5 years

  • Named a top 20 Master Craftsman by Early American Life Magazine

  • My eagle at Historic Jamestown on the article cover page. I can carve one for you!

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  • Based on a design by the great Cape Cod carver, paul white of sandwich, ma

  • 43 inches wide

  • this eagle is an investment that will grow in value

  • 4 months in the making

  • $17,000     Available for immediate shipment

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4 Foot Vertical Bellamy
4 feet by 4 feet
$17,000
Available for immediate shipment

I also carve other folk motifs, house signs, boat quarterboards, etc.

here's a gold leafed cod fish,
27 inches long.   $2500
18 inch: $1500
I can carve any size

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Yuletide Bellamy
4 feet 2" span;  22" high
24 karat gold leaf
 4 foot Available For immediate shipment:   $6,000        3 foot span:  $5,000

ThE Original Bellamy sold at auction for $500,000 recently

33 inches wide by 12 inches tall

Offered at $15,000 Available for immediate shipment

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Camden, Maine Bellamy
4 foot wingspan, 4 feet tall
24 karat gold leaf
$10,000   Available for immediate shipment
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War & Peace Bellamy eagles

Traditionally, the War Eagle faces right and the Peace Eagle faces left
Natural wood, Antiqued finish.  These are almost 7 feet wide.

$4500 plus shipping for 6-7 foot eagle
$3000 for 4-5 foot
$2500 for 3 foot

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Libertas Aut Morire
"Liberty or death"

You choose the words, the size, degree of 'antiquing' , Natural vs. gold leaf, and  the colours

Hand carved incised, gold leaf gilded lettering


This one is 24k Gold leaf
34 inches wide

$4,500  for 32-26 inch span

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Here's an example of an eagle finished with an intermediate degree of  "antiquing".  I burnish the gold leaf & use shellac,  glazes, toners, and  polishing techniques to achieve the degree of antiquing desired. 
I can achieve Any look or degree of antiquing.


Eagles are shipped UPS in a home crafted box for maximal protection. Shipping cost will be added to cost of eagle....

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"Antique" gold leaf finish

 

Folk, Holiday, Nautical, signs, Quarterboards, etc. 
More here, & here

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 Christmas Bellamy

"Roughing out " the shape

3 feet wide

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Almost Completed -  
       A bit more painting to do

Ye Olde Gilded Whale   $1900
28 to 32 inches 
 (all gold-leafed carvings hold up very well outside)
Also available in any colour paint, antiqued gold leaf, or white leaf

3 feet wide

Available now - $6,500

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I can carve your personalised Quarterboard, Boat, or House sign in any style

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Whimsical and Holiday folk carvings.  Let me know what you want - I will carve it to perfection (I like new challenges)

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About Bellamy eagles

Bold and Brash: The Art Of John Haley Bellamy

PUBLISHED: JULY 29, 2014

By: Stephen May

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — Woodcarving, the art of shaping figures and ornaments out of wood by means of handheld cutting tools, has an extensive and honorable history dating back to archaic sculpture in ancient Greece and Egypt. Since then, carvers the world over have created widely varied objects that often reflect the history and cultural climate of their native country.

In America over the years, woodcarving has had its ups and downs, enjoying great popularity at times, at others falling out of favor. Machine-made objects diminished but did not extinguish the work of skilled carvers.

On the maritime front, independent scholar James A. Craig posits that “Ever since man first lashed together a few wooden planks, fashioned a sail and set off across uncharted waters, there has been a constant need to personify vessels as somehow being alive.” Seeking to reflect the sense of life and personality mariners felt dwelled within their timbered fames, ancient Egyptian, Greek, Phoenician, Viking and more modern British warships were adorned with a variety of menacing prows.

Craig dates the first American figurehead to 1689, a lion (symbol of British sovereignty) for the bow of a sloop built in Boston. The lion remained the most popular figure for American ship figureheads until the eve of the American Revolution when the impending conflict mandated dethronement of royal lions.

New figurehead motifs after the Revolution included animals, birds, symbols of Liberty and figures of statesmen, historical characters and fictional heroes. According to Craig, they signaled “the emergence of a truly unique American vision in the nautical arts, one where the new country’s mythologies and national identity were given voice and brought to life dramatically.”

Many fine carvers labored in anonymity. Not so John Haley Bellamy (1836–1914), a supremely talented wood craftsman who was prolific and famous in his day. Recently rediscovered and restudied, Bellamy is the subject of a splendid exhibition, “The Bold and Brash Art of John Haley Bellamy,” on view at Discover Portsmouth through October 3. Marking the centennial of his death, the show documents the magnitude of Bellamy’s mastery of symbolic, aesthetically pleasing carving. The exhibition is jointly organized by Craig and Sandra Rux, curator of the Portsmouth Historical Society.

A key to this informed exhibition is Craig, a Gloucester, Mass., specialist in American marine art. He devoted a tremendous amount of research to finding out more about Bellamy, his art and the world in which the artist lived. The resulting book, American Eagle: The Bold Art & Brash Life of John Haley Bellamy, is a first-rate examination of the colorful life of a significant artist and his rise to fame.

In his day and today, Bellamy eagles were readily recognizable and much sought-after by collectors. Often gilded, they were characterized by enormous, widespread wings, razor-sharp beaks parted in full cry and talons that clutched the American flag and shield with protective fervor. These attributes and more made for an iconic image in our art history.

Bellamy, hardly a poor lad, grew up in the landmark Sir William Pepperell mansion — then, as now, a large, elegant and prestigious structure in Kittery Point, Maine. His ambitious and industrious father worked at the heart of the area’s thriving shipbuilding community as a housewright, boat builder, timber inspector and politically connected leader. Portsmouth and Kittery Point were prime locales for building commercial vessels for New England’s expanding merchant class.

Growing up in this nautical atmosphere, young Bellamy “gained the drive, discipline and determination necessary to make his own phenomenal mark in the world,” says Craig. Acquiring a love of learning in school, he began a lifetime of studying history, literature and art. He grew into manhood a charming, striking figure, described by one contemporary as “courteous, quiet mannered and good natured in his dealings with others.” He never married.

After learning decorative woodcarving from his father, Bellamy apprenticed with Samuel Dockum, Portsmouth’s leading woodcarver. During six years with this master craftsman, Bellamy learned all aspects of the trade, especially ship carving, and, according to a friend, “acquired a reputation for originality in design, skill in workmanship and rapidity in execution.”

For a half century starting in 1859, Bellamy worked in small shops in Kittery Point and Portsmouth, outfitting ships with figureheads, cat heads, stern boards, gangway boards and minor decorative accents. For a time, long, slender clipper ships required streamlined figureheads, particularly eagles that suggested speed and flight. They became, Craig observes, “the most glamorous of American carvings.”

One startling object in the exhibition is an expressively carved pine likeness of a lion that is at once fearsome and charming. Figural carvings such as this were used to decorate the end of heavy timber booms, called cat heads, on the bows of merchant and naval ships throughout the Nineteenth Century.

During the Civil War, Bellamy worked at the Portsmouth and Charlestown Navy Yards building warships for the US Navy. He continued to work for the Navy intermittently thereafter.

In the wake of the Civil War, Bellamy began to create a wide variety of small (2 feet long) eagle forms as a symbol of the reunited country. Many relatively plain eagle figures are on view in the exhibition, most with patriotic phrases in overhead banners — “Don’t Give Up the Ship!” — or holiday greetings — “Merry Christmas.” Selling for one dollar apiece, these “Bellamy Eagles” were popular with Americans eager to flaunt their patriotism and their contentment with the Union’s victory. Thousands were carved and assembled by Bellamy with the help of family and friends. Frank Jones, Portsmouth’s leading bar owner, ordered 500 eagles to distribute to barroom customers.

Among Bellamy’s larger works, stretching to 12 or more feet, were sternboards intended for the Navy, for decorating entrances or for spreading across the facades of buildings in New Hampshire and Maine. Full-scale eagles were carved to sit atop new tourist hotels.

Bellamy eagles were also commissioned by local governments to decorate city halls, firehouses and other municipal sites. Specialized eagles standing atop round balls became the focal point of gardens.

In the late 1860s, Bellamy helped restore portions of Sparhawk Hall, built in 1742 as a gift from Sir William Pepperell to his daughter and son-in-law. Going beyond his usual carvings, Bellamy recreated the left half of the paneling from its parlor, including the intricate shell-topped corner cupboard. Former college professor and president of the Portsmouth Historical Society Richard M. Candee singles out the superior craftsmanship of Bellamy’s portion of this massive object. Craig and Candee speculate that the rebuilt parlor paneling is “perhaps the first example of private restoration of a historic home in the United States.”

Surviving from Sparhawk Hall is the only known bird other than an eagle that Bellamy created, “Hawk-on-a-Spar,” circa 1868. Made of black walnut and named in a play on words of the house in which it hung, it is now in the collection of the Portsmouth Athenaeum.

In the early 1880s, Bellamy was paid $2.32 a day for a year and a half to design and carve his most famous object, a massive figurehead for the USS Lancaster. With an 18-foot wingspan, weighing 3,200 pounds, the fierce pine eagle, sheathed in bright gold leaf, represented American power and global reach while at sea. Craig observes that this awesome piece “was destined to be regarded as one of the all-time greatest creations in the American woodcarving tradition … it would make … [Bellamy’s] name truly immortal.” It now shines in golden glory in the lobby of the Mariners’ Museum in Newport News, Va.

Over the years, numerous artists, writers, actors and politicians frequented Bellamy’s workshop. Edwin Booth, Hannibal Hamlin, Winslow Homer, William Dean Howells, Mark Twain, George Savary Wasson and numerous old-time sea captains, fishermen and Navy veterans were among those who gathered for gossiping, swapping stories and earnest debate with the well-read and intelligent master carver. In declining health, Bellamy died of a stroke at age 77 and is buried in the family plot behind the local Baptist church.

Bellamy eagles still adorn businesses in the Kittery Point-Portsmouth area and, in a fitting tribute to his genius, Bellamy’s art continues to inspire local woodcarvers. In an impressive display on the exhibition’s second floor are museum-quality copies by contemporary woodcarvers of Bellamy sculptures. They range from large outdoor eagles to smaller indoor banner-toting raptors. Among the contemporary carvers in the Bellamy mold is Arthur Swanson, whose copies are “virtually indistinguishable” from the originals, says Craig. They sell in the museum store for around $3,000.

Architectural woodcarver Michael Dow not only repairs and reproduces Bellamy eagles, but also creates men’s jewelry faithful to Bellamy’s designs. Kittery Point lobsterman and woodcarver David Kaselauskas produces Bellamy-inspired objects for modern use.

British-born Vinnie Harrild is “today’s premier choice among private collectors for the restoration of damaged Bellamy carvings,” says Craig. He also works with Chelsea Clock to transform brightly painted Bellamy eagles into handmade clock cases.

In addition to these talented imitators, Bellamy’s legacy lives on in his beautiful carvings, works that continue to captivate viewers and collectors. Thanks to the commendable leadership of Discover Portsmouth in organizing this revelatory exhibition, accompanied by Craig’s comprehensive biography, it seems certain this carver extraordinaire will be admired in perpetuity for his unique oeuvre.

A few Bellamy works come on the market from time to time. Craig writes that the early Bellamy eagles that originally sold for a dollar were bringing upwards of a hundred dollars within 50 years of his death. “Today those same works can easily fetch as much as $160,000, while larger and more exquisite pieces have sold for more than $660,000,” says Craig.

Craig’s American Eagle monograph, remarkably thorough and highly informative, is must reading for aficionados of Bellamy and woodcarving. Published by the Portsmouth Marine Society, it sells for $45 hardcover.

Discover Portsmouth is at 10 Middle Street next to the John Paul Jones House. Both are well worth a visit. For information: www.portsmouthhistory.org or 603-436-8433.

Stephen May is an independent historian, writer and lecturer who divides his time between Washington, D.C., and midcoast Maine.

SeaCoast Online

By Deborah McDermott
Posted Feb 9, 2014 

PORTSMOUTH — He was a master woodcarver, a marketing genius, financial mainstay of his family, a friend of the likes of Mark Twain and Winslow Homer. Few in 19th century New England would fail to know the name John Bellamy, thanks to his iconic Bellamy Eagle — carvings that today are worth tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Bellamy was born in 1836, one of 10 children of politician and woodworker Charles Bellamy, once Maine state treasurer as well as state senator and representative. The family lived in what remains today arguably the most iconic building in Kittery Point — the gracious Pepperrell Mansion on Route 103.

To support his family, Charles also worked as a U.S. inspector of timber at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and the Charlestown Navy Yard in Massachusetts.

“He designed the Kittery Point Bridge and he provided plans for one of the school buildings in Kittery Point,” Craig said. “He was in the business of working with wood.”

By the time his oldest child was 15, John Bellamy had learned what his father could teach him and needed to move on. He took an apprenticeship across the river with Samuel Dockum — considered the most skilled furniture maker in Portsmouth in the mid-19th century.

“Bellamy is learning how to work quickly, how to know the dimensions of wood by eyeballing it, how to learn the grains — the most important thing he’s learning,” Craig said. He also learned not only how to make furniture, but signs, coffins “just about anything made of wood.”

He struck out on his own at 21, and during the Civil War worked for the U.S. Navy, like his father before him, “carving figureheads, gangway boards, stern boards, interior appointments, just about anything you can think of.”

After the war, he and a partner started their own shop, making frames, clocks and other carvings that displayed Masonic symbols. “There was a surge in popularity of the Masons after the war and Bellamy took advantage of that.”

The eagles, too, were a clever marketing idea. Back on the family estate in Kittery Point by 1872, Bellamy saw “a new industry had taken over: tourism,” Craig said. “It was post-Civil War, the wounds were being healed, the West was being won, the U.S. was starting to take its place as a global power and there was a tremendous surge of patriotism.”

And wouldn’t all patriotic American tourists want a carved eagle?

Working in a small building on the grounds of the estate — a building that still stands today — he designed his stylized eagle.

“The design was original to him and none had come up with it before,” Craig said. “Before, eagles had been 100 percent realistic. By streamlining the eagle, he felt it was more evocative of the ideals of America.

“And it was faster to carve, so quicker to get into the hands of tourists.”

Before long, his father and several of his brothers were working for him, along with several apprentices. He made sure his large eagles, some 10 to 14 feet long, were prominently displayed — like atop Portsmouth City Hall or Appledore House at the Isles of Shoals.

John Haley Bellamy

A popular smaller, 2-foot eagle incorporated a banner on which was often carved “Merry Christmas” or “Happy New Year.” One of his best customers was Portsmouth brewer Frank Jones, who gave out Bellamy Eagles like banks today give out calendars. “He was buying 500, 700 eagles at a time,” Craig said.

Luminaries like Twain, Homer and fellow Kittery Point summer resident and journalist William Dean Howells were regular visitors.

One of the enduring myths about Bellamy is that he was a bad alcoholic, almost a town drunk of Portsmouth and later Kittery Point. Craig said Bellamy did turn to alcohol when, early in life, he was spurned by a woman, “but he recognized the problem. It was a lifelong struggle. I don’t know the level of addiction, but the stories don’t ring true when you see what his output was.”

The end of his life was not a pretty one. Outliving all of his siblings, his hands gnarled by arthritis, in his last years he was declared incompetent by his doctor and put in the care of a couple who, said Craig, “bled him dry within two or three years.”

He died in 1914.

“He’s one of the most famous men to come out of Kittery Point,” said historical society president Richard Candee. “Our job is to remind people about him, to remind them what a lifetime of wood carving looks like.

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By James A. Craig 

The simple, austere lines and curves that convey the unmistakable sense of steadfast swiftness and strength of a Bellamy eagle—with wings outstretched, often clutching a shield or flags, and brandishing banners—evoke the character and ideals of the American nation in a way no artist prior to its creator, John Haley Bellamy (1836–1914), had envisioned. Not since the 1982 publication of lay historian Yvonne B. Smith’s John Haley Bellamy, Carver of Eagles, has this popular carver’s life and work been examined. This has now changed with the retrospective exhibition and accompanying publication, American Eagle: The Bold Art and Brash Life of John Haley Bellamy, which examines the career of this celebrated American woodcarver in depth.

Hitherto overlooked aspects of his career, involving his crafting of furniture, Masonic-themed carvings, mechanical inventions, and works of pure whimsy present a broader picture of the man, revealing him to have been an infinitely more diverse and talented artist than previously described. Depicted alternately as a disciplined laborer and a helpless drunkard, a manic inventor and an aloof poet, an irresponsible pleasure-seeker and a devoted kinsman, Bellamy’s true life’s story has been obscured by a smokescreen of ribald legends and tall tales (Fig. 2).

The son of a housewright, boat builder, and inspector of timber, Bellamy was born in the seaside community of Kittery, Maine. Through the example of his ambitious father, Charles Gerrish Bellamy, he gained his first exposure to the woodcarver’s vocation. When the time arrived to leave home, John Haley Bellamy apprenticed to an established woodcarver. Despite older claims that Boston woodcarver Laban S. Beecher was his master, Bellamy was actually trained by Samuel Dockum in neighboring Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Dockum was a house and ship carver, who made everything from coffins to rocking chairs to the finish work on many Piscataqua River-built clipper ships. Bellamy’s apprenticeship likely lasted six years; beginning sometime after 1851, when he began working for Dockum at the age of fifteen, to 1857.

Bellamy launched his woodcarving career in 1859 by establishing a studio at 17 Daniel Street in Portsmouth, in rooms he likely rented from Dockum. His business card advertises a master woodcarver capable of executing the full array of jobs incumbent upon American woodcarvers at that time. An 1859 newspaper informs us that he was making ship’s figureheads for the shipbuilders of Portsmouth. After brief stints spent in the shipyards of East Boston and Medford, Massachusetts, the epicenter of mid-nineteenth-century shipbuilding in New England, by 1860, Bellamy had left his commercial clientele behind to work as a decorative shipcarver for the United States Navy. Working first at the Portsmouth Navy Yard, then at the Charlestown, Massachusetts, Navy Yard, Bellamy began an association with the navy that lasted as late as circa 1898–1900.

Previously unknown creations recently discovered reveal that from catheads and billetheads to stern boards and figureheads, no facet of a warship’s exterior that could accommodate decorative woodcarving was beyond the reach of Bellamy’s hand. A particular specialty appears to have been gangway boards: large decorative plaques that lined the sides of a ship’s gangway.

His most celebrated creation was the USS Lancaster eagle figurehead. Conceived and carved between December 1879 and August 1881, the majestic eagle is Bellamy’s magnum opus. It is as much a feat of engineering as a work of art, given the challenges of holding intact this three-thousand-pound gilded pine carving with an eighteen-foot wingspan atop the bow of a warship subjected to the unforgiving oceanic environment for over twenty years.

 

 John Haley Bellamy (1836–1914), USS Lancaster eagle figurehead, 1879–1881. Painted and gilded pine, H. 120, W. 232, D. 152 in. Courtesy, The Mariner’s Museum, Newport News, VA.

Due to long bouts of unemployment between projects in the post-Civil War navy yard, Bellamy partnered with a fellow navy-yard worker in July of 1866 to form Titcomb & Bellamy, “Makers of Emblematic Frames and Brackets.” Located at 11 City Square, Charlestown, Massachusetts, on the first floor of a Masonic lodge, the firm sought to cash in on a post-Civil War resurgence of membership in fraternal organizations (particularly Freemasonry). Bellamy designed and produced a wide array of frames, clock cases, and what-not shelves replete with the symbols of Freemasonry . His partner, David A. Titcomb, sold them to a dozen states stretching from Vermont to Florida, and as far west as Mississippi.

Personal letters to and from Bellamy reveal he employed apprentices in his Charlestown studio, and in times of high demand, even his father and younger brother Elisha (himself a master woodcarver), in the production of these designs. Close investigation reveals that they were mass-produced, constructed by use of nascent assembly line methods, using mechanical scroll saws and patterns to ensure uniformity of design and rapid production.

Bellamy had sold his interest in Titcomb & Bellamy and returned to the Piscataqua region by September of 1872. With the experiences gained from running his fast-paced, profitable workshop and recognizing the economic opportunity of the region’s blossoming tourism industry, Bellamy embarked in a new direction. The patriotic American eagle promised him a wider audience and greater sales than his fraternal carvings ever could.

Bellamy’s first eagle carving commissions were for large eagles in the round or long, wide forms for commercial and civic clients. Placed conspicuously in areas of high traffic, these eagles provided Bellamy with an income and popularized another type of eagle carving he had conceived in Charlestown. Known today as the “Bellamy eagle,” these two-foot-wide painted plaques are among the most celebrated and instantly recognizable pieces of Americana.

Easily transportable, affordably priced (only one or two dollars apiece), and sporting any number of political, fraternal, religious, holiday, and personal sentiments, from “Don’t Give Up the Ship,” to “Merry Christmas!”. The Bellamy eagle easily appealed to a wide and diverse clientele.

Like his Masonic-themed carvings in Charlestown, Bellamy employed nascent assembly line production methods for optimum mass-production—reducing details, streamlining, and deconstructing the eagles down to their most basic components. In crafting these birds, Bellamy harkened toward the minimalism found in the coming century’s works of modern art. Consisting of four pieces held together with a minimum of hardware, they were easy to craft and his shop was able to fill orders ranging from five to seven hundred at a time for local patrons like Portsmouth brewer Frank Jones, and those further afield, like the Manhattan Storage & Warehouse Company of New York City. Once again he hired his father, brother Elisha, and probably his younger brother, Charles Jr., to help with the volume of eagle carvings produced from 1872 to the early years of the twentieth century.

Yet even while producing some of his more elaborate eagle plaques (Fig. 10), Bellamy also toiled as a house carpenter, fashioning interior and exterior decorative carvings for Portsmouth and Kittery homes. He also carved furniture and works of pure whimsy.

In his day, John Haley Bellamy was a literate poet and urbane raconteur who enjoyed close personal friendships with many of the leading writers and artists of his day, including Winslow Homer, William Dean Howells, and the incomparable Mark Twain. The last of his nine siblings to pass away, his hands gnarled with arthritis, his mind deteriorating with age, in February 1911, Bellamy was deemed legally incompetent and forced to reside with a cousin in Portsmouth; he died from a stroke on April 5, 1914.

Nowadays, carvings that Bellamy charged one dollar for easily fetch as much as $160,000 at auction, and larger pieces have sold for $660,000. His was an artistic vision that has defied changing temperaments and fashions. To gaze into the fierce eye of a Bellamy eagle is to look into the very soul of the American nation.

The exhibition Bold & Brash: The Art of John Haley Bellamy, is on view at the Portsmouth Historical Society’s Discover Portsmouth Center, New Hampshire, through October 3, 2014 (www.PortsmouthHistory.org); an exhibition catalogue is available. On display are more than one hundred Bellamy carvings and numerous artifacts—from his earliest known drawings executed in childhood to his final creation fashioned in 1912—drawn from nearly forty public and private collections and many not publicly exhibited since Bellamy’s time.

James A. Craig (www.jamesacraig.com) is the author of American Eagle: The Bold Art and Brash Life of John Haley Bellamy and curator of Bold & Brash, the Art of John Haley Bellamy.

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