John Ross Key (American, 1832-1920) was born in Hagerstown, Maryland in 1832.  He was the grandson of Francis Scott Key, author of "The Star Spangled Banner."  He was a draftsman with the U.S. Coast Survey, along with Gilbert Munger and Whistler.  He had a studio in Boston before the Civil War.  In 1863, he was with the Corps of Engineers at Charleston, South Carolina, sketching the Federal siege of the Confederate city.  During the period immediately after the war he worked in New York City and Boston.  He was in San Francisco from c. 1869-72 and painted views of Yosemite, Tahoe, Point Lobos, and the Mariposa sequoias.  Over the years he worked in Chicago, St. Louis, Boston, New York, and Baltimore.  He painted numerous mountain scenes of New Hampshire, as well as scenes in Virginia.  From 1908-1917, he settled in Washington, DC; then moved to Baltimore for the remaining three years of his life.  Besides his paintings, Key was noted for his exceptional charcoal drawings.

Studied:

Mostly self taught, but also in Munich and Paris in 1873-75

Member:

Society of Washington Artists; Boston AC

Exhibited:

NAD, 1866-79; PAFA; Boston Athenaeum; Boston AC; Centennial Expo, Philad, 1876 (gold medal); Corcoran Gal, 1908; S. Indp A., 1917

Work:

CGA; Wash. County Museum FA; Maryland Hist. Soc; Bancroft Lib; Univ.Calif, Berkeley; Oakland Museum; Amon CarterMuseum, Forth Worth, TX

Resources:

G&W; Art Annual, XVII; CAB; Clement and Hutton; Fielding; Thieme-Becker; Cowdrey, NAD; McMahan, Artists of Washington, DC; Campbell New Hampshire Scenery; WW17