The Encyclopedia Americana (1920)/Harding, Chester

HARDING, Chester, American portrait painter: b. Conway, Mass., 1 Sept 1792; d. Boston, 1 April 1866. As an artist he was self-taught, his trade being that of a turner. He fought as a soldier in the War of 1812, and found employment on his discharge as a sign-painter in Pittsburgh, Pa. Crossing the ocean he became a favorite portrait painter in London and found patronage among the royal family. His ‘Portrait of Daniel Webster’ is owned by the New York Bar Association, while his ‘Portrait of John Randolph’ is in the Corcoran Gallery, Washington.