Jan
03

Today in Smithsonian History: January 3, 1905

Portrait photograph of Charles Lang Freer (1856-1919), industrialist, art collector, and founding donor of the Freer Gallery of Art, probably by Edward Steichen, c. 1916.

Portrait photograph of Charles Lang Freer (1856-1919), industrialist, art collector, and founding donor of the Freer Gallery of Art, probably by Edward Steichen, c. 1916.

January 3, 1905 Charles Lang Freer first offers his art collection to the Smithsonian Institution. President Theodore Roosevelt has to convince the Board of Regents to accept the gift, and the formal deed of gift is signed May 5, 1906.

Courtesy Smithsonian Institution Archives

Related posts:

In 1904, Theodore Roosevelt Won a Presidential Election…And a Pair of Ostriches American FlagCelebrate President’s Day in the company of greatness Freer in straw hat drinking tea with two EgyptiansDigging deeper to find Freer’s final resting place "A Virgin" by Abbott Handerson Thayer, 1849-1921. Oil on canvas. Gift of Charles Lang Freer, Freer and Sackler Galleries.Today in Smithsonian History: April 15, 1912

Posted: 3 January 2020
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