In addition to his scenes of everyday life and portraits of people, Johnson created images of historical events and figures from works of literature, drama, and music. For example, “Carry Me, and I’ll Drum You Through” was inspired by an incident from the Battle of Antietam, 1862, and Membership Vote at the Union League Club, May 11, 1876, recorded a contentious meeting in which he participated much later. His Marguerite, Cosette, and Minnehaha are personifications of fictional heroines from novels and poetry. His Boy Lincoln represents both the future United States president and the archetypical American youth who, with determination and hard work, could succeed. Johnson rendered several of these imaginative images as both paintings and drawings. These literary and historical works evince both his personal interest in those subjects and his awareness of their popularity with the broad public. —AM
MacGibeny, 2022: Although The Nurse is the earliest published historical title of this drawing, Johnson made it in the same year as his corresponding painting, which was exhibited at the National Academy of Design in 1868 as The Field Hospital. It is unlikely that he would have given the works different titles.
In the letter quoted below, Elizabeth Johnson's correspondent Mrs. Blatchford was Mary Elizabeth Williams Blatchford, the mother of Charles and Eliphalet Blatchford, who were portrayed by Johnson in 1880. Johnson also portrayed Mrs. May—his sister Harriet Johnson—several times, as well as her husband Joseph May, both mentioned in the letter.
Elizabeth Johnson letter to Mary Blatchford, dated October 27, 1909:
"I was so pleased to hear that you owned the drawing of the 'Field Hospital' as it is so charming and touching that [sic] young wounded soldier and his nurse. The muse was Mrs. May (I mean she sat for it, wife of the Rev. Joseph May of Philadelphia and Mr. Johnson’s sister). I suppose the 'Camp Hospital at Gettysburg' is the real name—& I have the pass Mr. Johnson had for following the Army for war subjects….”
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Also owned by: Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston (Call number: Graphics Misc–Women 10)
See all Prints after Works by Johnson.