Queer Places:
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA), 118-128 N Broad St, Philadelphia, PA 19102
Lindenwood Cemetery, 2324 W Main St, Fort Wayne, IN 46808, United States
Jessie Marie Hamilton (January 31, 1865 - May 3, 1960) was an American artist born on January 31, 1865, in Fort Wayne, Indiana, to Andrew Holman Hamilton
and Phoebe Taber. She grew up alongside her sisters Katherine and
Agnes, who were also artists, and her brothers Allen and Taber. Her prominent cousins included
Edith Hamilton, Alice Hamilton,
Margaret Hamilton, and Norah Hamilton.
Much like her sister Katherine, Jessie spent a significant portion of her life caring for her aging mother. Her formal artistic training took place at the Fort Wayne School of Art between 1888 and 1893 under the instruction of J. Ottis Adams and William Forsyth. She later became a founding member of the second Fort Wayne School of Art and taught there from 1893 to 1898.
Following her father's death in 1895, she and her sister Agnes attended the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia from 1898 to 1900 to study under Cecilia Beaux. Afterward, she returned to Fort Wayne to focus on pastel portraits, watercolor landscapes, and etchings. Her work was showcased in cities such as Philadelphia, St. Louis, Indianapolis, and Richmond, Indiana, as well as through the traveling Society of Western Artists Annual Exhibition, and it is preserved today in the permanent collection of the Fort Wayne Museum of Art. According to Alice Hamilton's biographer, Jessie was considered the best loved of all the cousins.
Following her mother's passing, Jessie and Agnes relocated to their summer home in Connecticut near their extended family. Jessie spent her later years there before passing away on May 3, 1960, in Scottsdale, Arizona, and she was laid to rest with her family at Lindenwood Cemetery in Fort Wayne. Regarding her links and relationships, she was noted as a cousin and intimate friend of Edith Hamilton, maintaining close emotional ties and a deep familial network within the prominent Hamilton family.
Support this project
This website is a passion project researched, developed, and funded entirely by me. If you find the content valuable and would like to help support the ongoing research and hosting costs, any contribution is deeply appreciated.
Thank you for keeping this independent resource alive!
My books on Amazon: Elisa Rolle's books