Blowing Rock in Watauga County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)

Elliott Daingerfield

1859-1932

Photographed By Mike Stroud, 2011

1. Elliott Daingerfield Marker

Inscription. Artist, teacher, author. His paintings hang in the National Gallery, Metropolitan Museum, and other galleries. His home is here.

Erected 1986 by (N.C.) Divisions of Archives and History. (Marker Number N-25.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Arts, Letters, Music. In addition, it is included in the North Carolina Division of Archives and History series list.

Location. 36° 8.238′ N, 81° 42.82′ W. Marker is in Blowing Rock, North Carolina, in Watauga County. Marker is on Blowing Rock Highway (U.S. 221) north of Westglow Circle, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 224 Westglow Circle, Blowing Rock NC 28605, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Old Lake Bed (approx. 0.9 miles away); Julian Price Memorial Park (approx. 1.1 miles away); L.M. Tate Show Grounds (approx. 1.3 miles away); Moses Cone Estate (approx. 1.4 miles away); Carriage Roads (approx. 1.4 miles away); A Prosperous Mountain Family (approx. 1.4 miles away); a different marker also named Carriage Roads (approx. 1½ miles away); Mayview Manor (approx. 1.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Blowing Rock.

Regarding Elliott Daingerfield.

Paid Advertisement

Click on the ad for more information.
Please report objectionable advertising to the Editor.

Click or scan to see
this page online

In the early 1900s, the Santa Fe Railway, in an attempt to boost tourism to the southwestern United States,commissioned a number of paintings by renowned artists of the natural wonders and tourist destinations of the region.Perhaps the most famous painting from this exhibition, The Grand Canyon, was completed by artist Elliott Daingerfield,who spent the first quarter of his life in Fayetteville. Born on March 26, 1859, in Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia, Elliott was the son of John and Matilda Daingerfield. The family moved to North Carolina in 1861 when Jefferson Davis appointed Captain John Daingerfield as commander of the Fayetteville Arsenal. In the aftermath of the war, Elliott received his education at several private schools. He demonstrated an artistic talent from an early age and, according to family tradition, began painting after being given a box of watercolors for Christmas one year. He also apprenticed himself to a local China painter and a Fayetteville photographer. The Daingerfield family home in Fayetteville had been the site of the Bank of the United States from 1820 to 1835.
In 1880, Daingerfield left Fayetteville for New York where he apprenticed under Walter Satterlee, associate member of the National Academy of Design. Four years later, he left Satterlee to join George Inness of Holbein Studios. The two became friends, and Daingerfield later credited Inness

Elliott Daingerfield image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Wikipedia

2. Elliott Daingerfield

with teaching him techniques of color and light that became his hallmark. In 1886, Daingerfield traveled to Blowing Rock attempting to recover from diphtheria. Although he returned to New York, the artist maintained a summer home in the village until his death. The journey was the turning point of his career. Overcome by the beauty of the North Carolina mountains and what he saw as religious connotations involved in nature, Daingerfield devoted himself to landscape and religious art. His 1895 Madonna with Child is considered one of the great American works of art.
In 1911, the Santa Fe Railway hired Daingerfield to supplement their exhibition of southwestern landscape scenes. For nearly three years he traveled the southwest painting masterpieces such as The Grand Canyon, Trees on the Canyon Rim,The Sleepers, and The Genius of the Canyon. The works were later presented at the Corcoran Gallery in an exposition called The Society of Men Who Paint the Far West. Religious works also dominated this period in his life, and his 1918 still hangs in the Church of St. Mary in the Hills at Blowing Rock.
In 1924, Daingerfield traveled to Europe to work, but suffered an embolism. He returned after only a year. The injury left him debilitated and marked the end of his artistic career. Instead he focused on lecturing and publishing. He had several manuscripts completed before 1925,

Elliott Daingerfield Marker, seen looking north along US 221 image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Mike Stroud, June 12, 2011

3. Elliott Daingerfield Marker, seen looking north along US 221

including biographies of friend George Inness and artist Ralph Albert Blakelock.
Daingerfield died on October 22, 1932, of a heart attack, leaving a wife and two daughters. He was buried in Cross Creek Cemetery in Fayetteville. In 1934, the Grand Central Galleries of New York held a memorial exhibition showing fifty-three of his paintings. In 1971, the North Carolina Museum of Art staged an exposition of nearly two hundred of his works.
(N.C. Dept. of Cultural Resources)

Elliott Daingerfield Marker, southbound view image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Mike Stroud, June 12, 2011

4. Elliott Daingerfield Marker, southbound view

Elliott Daingerfield Marker, near the Westglow Resort and Spa sign image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Mike Stroud, June 12, 2011

5. Elliott Daingerfield Marker, near the Westglow Resort and Spa sign

Credits. This page was last revised on July 2, 2021. It was originally submitted on June 12, 2011, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 673 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on June 13, 2011, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina.