Painted portrait of Thomas Dew
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- Memorial Type
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Memorial Artwork
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Visual Work of Art
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Dew, Thomas
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Painted portrait of Thomas Dew
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The college's president and faculty purchased this painting in 1847. It hangs in the Wren Building. Dew was President of William & Mary from 1836 until he died in 1846. William Garl Browne (or Brown), Jr. painted this the year Dew died in 1846. In response to events surrounding Nat Turner, Dew wrote Review of the Debate in the Virginia Legislature of 1831 and 1823, in which he made pro-slavery arguments. Because of Dew's strong pro-slavery stance during his time as President of William & Mary, the college became known as a hot bed for pro-slavery ideology. During the height of the Jim Crow era, the William & Mary administration decided to reinter Dew's body in the chapel of the Wren Building, which is the heart of campus. Dew was an enslaver, enslaving 39 people in King and Queen County according to the 1820 census. He was a staunch defender of slavery.
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Oil on canvas
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Browne, Jr., William Garl
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1846
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Saunders, Robert Jr.
Position: 3123 (24 views)