1911
Wheeling Commandery No. 1
"Lady
Portrait Plate #6"
Since the curator is allowed to pick a few favorites
this series of Wheeling Commandery plates are certainly special! These plates
are hand-painted and the artistry is near perfection! They were made for
Wheeling Commandery No. 1 Knights Templar of Wheeling, West Virginia and
commemorates their Conclave held May 17 and 18, 1911.
These plates stand as a testament that the women 100 years ago were as pretty
then as they are now!
It is 10 inches in diameter and signed by the
artist H. Richard Boehm.
About the Artist
Henry Richard Boehm was born in
Illinois around 1870.
By 1905 he had moved to New York. He lived in Briarcliff Manor, New York in
Westchester County near Ossining. He is listed in the 1910 NY Census with
his wife and adopted daughter. He was an artist of some note whose work
appeared on the covers and inside several magazine like COSMOPOLITAN,
LESLIE'S WEEKLY, PEARSON'S, and LADIES' WORLD. He received strong praise
from the editors of COSMOPOLITAN who claimed to have "discovered" Boehm.
Despite this apparent success, he committed suicide on February 1, 1914
A special "Thanks" to
Nellie Carothers
for submitting the pictures of this wonderful plate.
