Frederic Remington

Frederic Remington, born in Canton, NY, October 4, 1861, was born during the Civil War, and his boyhood passions consisted of riding, boating, fishing, hunting, the military and the great outdoors. During school he enjoyed sketching and doodling different objects, especially soldiers in military uniforms.

He dropped out of college in 1880 when his father died of an abrupt illness. As a young adult Remington tried many different avenues of interest, but most were government and business endeavors that lasted a only few months.

In the summer of 1879 he met and began wooing Eva Adele Caten. They married in 1884, and tried the wearying Western frontier life for a time but quickly opted to settle in Brooklyn. Due to some bad dealings in business and difficulties in life, Eva left and returned to her father’s home.

Remington then went and wandered in the desert for several weeks, a kind of purging of the soul. After which, he returned to claim his wife and all his rightful responsibilities.

Shortly after Remington’s arrival in New York, he solicited work with Harper’s Weekly using his portfolio of western sketches. He then set out to prove himself as an artist. It was during the 1890s that Remington’s art career bloomed and developed and he became one of the most prolific artists of his time. His sketches portrayed subject matter that most captivated his interest: horses, military and the western frontier. And in return Remington made these interests the interests of the public.

Remington often said of his art work, “Cowboys are my cash.” The first of his attempts in sculpting was The Bronco Buster. Rattlesnake, Coming Through the Rye and The Cowboywould soon follow.

December 1909, at the apex of his career and the prime of his life Remington suddenly died from a ruptured appendix.