Elisha Taylor Baker (1827-1890)

Marine artist Elisha Taylor Baker was born in 1827 in New York City. His father, a former ship owner and captain, was a fish merchant. As a youth, Elisha spent some time at sea, probably in the whaling trade. He established a studio in downtown Manhattan at Pearl and South Streets and worked as a marine painter from about 1868. He painted portraits of all types of ships around New England, from yachts and whalers to steamships. He died in 1890 in Orange, Connecticut. His work is held among the collections of: the Kendall Whaling Museum; Mystic Seaport Museum; the Mariners Museum; New Bedford Whaling Museum; the Peabody Museum; and the Wadsworth Athenaeum.