Laundry Day

Born in East Windsor, Connecticut, Amelia Watson was tutored at home by her mother, who was an amateur painter, and she dedicated her career to mentoring aspiring women artists. In her early twenties, Watson joined the faculty of Temple Grove Seminary in Saratoga Springs, New York, and remained there several years, but eventually returned to her roots to teach at the Hartford Art School. A particularly formative artistic experience for Watson involved her exploration in 1895 of Cape Cod, during which she used Henry David Thoreau’s classic eponymous travelogue as her guide. Watson’s trip generated sketches and paintings that became the inspiration for a deluxe two-volume edition of Thoreau’s book. Watson went on to illustrate other books, including the cover, jacket maps, and full-page watercolor frontispiece for The Carolina Mountains by her longtime friend Margaret Morley.