Sosman & Landis: Shaping the Landscape of American Theatre. Employee No. 14 – David A. Strong

Copyright © 2021 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

David A. Strong was a scenic artist and stage mechanic at Sosman & Landis from 1884 until his passing in 1911. Strong and Thomas G. Moses were the first to work in Sosman & Landis’ main studio on Clinton Street in 1886. Moses and Strong completed a panorama of General Grant’s Trip Around the World while the rest of the crew was finishing up projects at the old studio on Clark Street. Of the panorama project, Moses wrote, “We were alone in the big studio for some time before the whole force came over.  We enjoyed painting the panorama as it was continuous. There was some careful blending to be done.” The new studio space on Clinton Street remained the home of Sosman & Landis until 1923 when the first iteration of the firm was liquidated.

His fellow scenic artists referred to Strong as “Old Trusty,” admiring his “facile brush.” Moses wrote, “His color was deep and rich and his drawings very correct.”

David Austin Strong was born on January 20, 1830 in East Windsor, Hartford County, Connecticut. He was the youngest of ten children born to Erastus Strong and Lucy Wolcott Drake. As a young man, Strong moved from East Windsor to New Haven, Connecticut, and worked as a decorative painter, providing a variety of services that ranged from sign painting to ornamental décor. In 1852 Strong was listed in the New Haven Directory as a sign painter, boarding at Bishop’s Hotel. Around this time, he entered the theatre profession at Homan’s Theatre. There he worked as both the stage manager and scenic artist for the Homans and fell in love with their daughter, Esther. Esther A. Homan was an actress at the venue, her residence at State and Summer streets in 1892. Esther’s 1894 obituary provided additional information about the couple’s life at Homan’s On April 16, 1894, the “Morning Journal-Courier” provided insight into the early theatrical activities of the Strongs (New Haven, CT, page 2). The obituary stated:  “Mrs. Strong was formerly Esther Homan, the daughter of Mr. Homan, who was the proprietor of Homan’s theater in the Exchange building of years ago. Homan’s theater in the Exchange building flourished in the fifties, and its popularity and success for a long period is well remembered in this city by old inhabitants; as also the fact that Miss Homan was the star of the company, which it is the privilege of but few to attain. She was a great popular favorite. Her husband, Mr. Strong, was also identified with ‘Homan’s’ as stage manager and scenic artist. At the same time, as we are informed, one of Miss Homan’s brothers was also a member of the Homan Theatre Company. Mr. Strong became quite noted for his success as a scenic artist, and many fine specimens from his brush have from time to time interested patrons of New Haven’s theaters. For some years he has been engaged in the profession in Chicago, meeting with still greater success in that larger field. Mr. Charles Homan of this city is the brother of the later Mrs. Strong. The funeral services will be held at the residence of her nephew, F. A. Frisbie…Mrs. Strong had been in poor health for the last two of three years and had been at times a great sufferer. The difficulty was an internal tumor.”

David Strong and Esther Homan were married on April 1, 1854 in New Haven. The couple lived with Esther’s sister Huldah and her husband Thaddeus Frisbie. Frisbie was also a local painter and frequently worked with Strong. Huldah Frisbie was the eldest of the three Homan children, followed by Charles, the middle child, and Esther. Strong and Frisbie formed a decorative painting company that lasted until Frisbie’s passing in 1859. In the years following Frisbie’s death Strong always took care of the Frisbie family, even after moving to Chicago. The Frisbies and Strongs eventually shared the same family grave plot in New Haven’s Evergreen Cemetery.

By the early 1860s Strong was an itinerant artist, traveling throughout the entire region for projects. However, he became increasingly associated with theaters in Washington D.C., Boston and New York. Strong soon specialized in burlesque pantomime and moving panoramas. His first significant panoramic work was entitled “Strong’s Washington and the War.” Advertisements stated that the exhibition included a series of representations of the City of Washington, with its street, houses, public buildings, fortifications, promenades, public levees, hospitals, stores, and hotels, heralding Strong as a genius. The panoramic exhibition opened on May 18, 1863. By May 22, 1863, the “National Republican” advertised that the event was “designed and executed by the celebrated artist Mr. David A. Strong.”

In March 1864, Strong delivered scenery for the “Grand Fairy Spectacle of the Seven Sisters and the Birth of Cupid in the Bower of Ferns.” This production played at Ford’s Theatre during November 1864. That year Strong was listed as living in Washington, D.C. at 334 E Street N. In Washington, D.C., he worked at various theaters, including Williard’s Hall, Grover’s Theatre, and Ford’s Theatre. For Grover’s Theatre, Strong partnered with fellow scenic artist John R. Smith and painted settings for “The Ticket-of-Leave Man.” Strong was credited as “the distinguished young artist of the theater” (“National Republican,” 18 Jan 1864, page 3). In later years, Moses recalled Strong sharing his recollections of Washington, D.C., and President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. Upon Strong’s passing in 1911, Moses wrote, “He was employed and was at work in Fords Theatre in Washington on the night that Lincoln was assassinated.  The Doctor who attended Lincoln was a personal friend of Strong’s, and as the Doctor was cutting Lincoln’s hair to get at the wound, he put hair in his coat pocket instead of throwing it on the floor.  He forgot until sometime next day.  He gave Strong a bit of it, which he kept to his dying day.”  This is not that far-fetched,  especially after examining Strong’s theater work in 1864. Interestingly a purported lock of Lincoln’s hair recently sold at auction.

. By December 1865, Strong was credited with the spectacle scenery for “L’Africaine.” A December 29, 1865, article in “The National Republican” commented that the settings were “greatly superior to the one given in London, and in every respect equal to the famous New York Scene.” It was Strong’s grasp of staged spectacle that propelled his career forward and brought him in contact with other well-known scenic artists at the time. Strong was one of the scenic artists who created the original scenery for the production of “The Black Crook” at Niblo’s Garden Theatre in 1866. On Sept. 12, 1866, the “New York Times” mentioned the “gorgeous and brilliant” new scenery by Richard Marston J. E. Hayes, Robert Smith, David A. Strong, Lafayette W. Seavey, and William Wallack. That same year, Strong also painted “Rip Van Winkle” with E. Hayes at the Olympic Theatre in New York. He continued to gain work and recognition not only in the east, but also in Chicago, Illinois. By 1868, Strong painted scenery for another Niblo’s Garden Theatre production, “The White Fawn.” On Jan. 20, 1868, the New York Daily Tribune” included a review of the “White Fawn” at Niblo’s, reporting, “The main credit of the ‘White Fawn’ belongs to the scene painters – Sachetti, Marston, Strong and Thorne” (page 2). On June 2, 1868, the “Chicago Tribune” reported, “Some of the principal scenes were brought from New York, but many of them were done here by Mr. Strong and are exquisitely beautiful, especially the Hall in the Palace of Safficallis and the Interior of the Dark Tower and he Enchanted Lake” (page 5).

The 1870 Federal Census lists Strong return to New Haven, Connecticut, where he and his wife were again living with the Frisbies (Hulda and her sons Frank and Frederick). The household also included Strong’s 71-year-old mother-in-law Esther Homan. In addition to painting stage settings for theaters across the country, Strong continued to paint panoramas.  In 1871 Strong was credited with the  “Panorama of Ireland.” Also advertised as the “Panoramic Mirror of Ireland,” his work toured for the next few years, making appearances at the Apollo Hall, Tony Pastor’s and the Republican Hall. Strong briefly returned home to New Haven in 1873, where he was again listed in the City Directory before moving west.

In 1874, the Strongs relocated to Chicago, where he secured work at the Adelphi Theatre, Haverly’s Theatre and McVicker’s Theatre. On August 10, 1876, Strong joined the Oriental Consistory. He entered the Fraternity in New Haven’s Hiram Lodge No. 1 on March 18, 1852. Over two decades later, he joined the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry in Chicago (Oriental Consistory, 1876). At Sosman & Landis. Strong was instrumental in the development of Masonic degree productions for both the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction and Southern Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite, even receiving the Honorary 33rd degree for his continued scenic contributions for degree work. Strong’s knowledge of stage machinery and spectacle was instrumental in successfully transforming Scottish Rite degree work into theatrical productions. Upon his passing, Moses wrote, “Strong was the “daddy” of all Masonic designs.”

By the early 1880s, Strong traveled throughout the midwestern region with his permanent residence remaining in Chicago. In 1880, he was also credited with the scenery for the Mastodon Minstrels. Of his settings, the “The work is from the pencil of Mr. D. A. Strong, the eminent scenic artist so long identified with Mr. Haverly’s Theatres” (Star Tribune, Minneapolis, MN, 22 Nov. 1880, page 6). During this time, Strong also worked with fellow scenic artists J. H. Rogers and Lou Malmsha for McVicker’s (Chicago Tribune, 4 Feb 1880, page 7). Upon Malmsha’s passing in 1882, Strong commented that his friend had only two equals in the country – Marston and Roberts of New York (New York Times, 21 Oct. 1882, page 4).

Strong continued to travel, and in 1882 painted scenery and a drop curtain for the new Opera House in Ottawa, Illinois (“Ottawa Free Trader,” 15 July 1882, page 2). The next year, he was credited with the new scenery for the Plumb Opera House in Topeka, Kansas (Daily Commonwealth, 29 July 1883, page 2) and the new Opera House in Aurora, Illinois (Inter Ocean, 22 June 1883, page 13).

Since its inception, Strong was also involved with the establishment of the Theatrical Mechanics Association (TMA). The TMA was founded in New York in 1866, the same time that Strong was working at Niblo’s Garden Theatre. The organization spread west and eventually reached Chicago where String was again involved with its establishment. Chicago Lodge No. 4 was organized on April 16, 1884 with its first president listed as John Barstow (also spelled Bairstow, a stage carpenter at McVicker’s Theatre).  The first meeting of Lodge No. 4 was at the Grand Opera House, with approximately seventy-five charter members, including Strong.  Certificates of organization were filed with Barstow, John E. Williams, and Frank F. Goss. In 1891, the national convention was held in Chicago. Chicago Lodge No. 4 members that attended the conference included Strong, James Quigly, John Bairstow, William Faber, Thomas McGann, John Foust, Frank Faber, L. B. Savage, F. V. Sauter, Frank A. Lathrop, and Wallace Blanchard. Grand Master James McCurdy, one of the original charter members, spoke about the history of the organization, explaining that it always included both managers from the houses and the men working as mechanics. The initial membership of sixteen rapidly increased to thirty by the end of their first year.  A second lodge was organized in Boston and then Philadelphia. By 1891 there were 2,300 members.  In 1891, a “Chicago Tribune” article about the TMA reported, “Perhaps the public does not know it, but it is a fact that the theatrical mechanics deserve as much credit for a successful performance as the actors themselves.  If one will only stop to think of the improvements that have been made in the last few years, the worth of the mechanic must be recognized.  The ugly, heavy, and unyielding scenery which twenty years ago littered up the stage has given place to scenery that is the work of artists and that is handled by skilled mechanics.  No longer are there dreary waits between acts.  All this was accomplished, and much of it due to the association, by means of which have been given and taken.”

Strong’s understanding of stage mechanics enhanced his ability to successfully produce scenic illusion for the stage. However, it was his approach to scenic art that may have been the greatest asset to Sosman & Landis. In the larger context of American theatre history, Strong represented the Düsseldorf School. On Dec. 18, 1892, the “Chicago Tribune” included Strong is an article entitled, “Paint Mimic Scenes, Men Who Have Found Fame in the Wing and Drop Curtains” (page 41). The article reported, “David Strong, ‘Old Trusty,’ still at work in this city, is the only survivor of the good old Dusseldorf school.  Everything that comes from his facile brush – and he could walk over miles of canvas of his own painting – has the quality of opaqueness peculiar to his school and seldom found nowadays.” It was this “quality of opaqueness” that greatly differed from scenic artist that applied a series of thin glazes.  For context, the Düsseldorf School referred to a group of painters who either taught or studied at the Düsseldorf Academy (now Düsseldorf State Academy of Art).  An extension of the German Romantic movement, it had a significant influence on nineteenth century landscape painting from the 1830s through the 1860s. This approach to easel art was also incorporated into scenic art for the stage. Düsseldorf School artworks were characterized by dramatically lit landscapes, with the focal point of the compositions falling in the middle ground. This light and action in the middle ground was framed with darker foreground masses on the sides. They employed roads, trails, streams, and other visual paths to draw one into the artistic composition.

On February 28, 1886, Strong was featured in a “Inter Ocean” article entitled “Up in the Clouds” (page 9). A short biography of Strong was included underneath his portrait: “Among the oldest and best-known scenic artists in Chicago is David A. Strong, whose name adorned Haverly’s bills in the latter’s palmy days, but who is now in the Sosman & Landis establishment. He was born so far back that he skillfully dodges the issue when questioned as to the exact time. His professional career was commenced in Howard’s Atheneum in Boston twenty-five years back, He was then engaged several years stocking the larger New England theaters with scenery. He painted in the National Theatre in Washington for four years during the war. Then went to the Chestnut at Philadelphia, under Len Grover’s management, He then worked in New York at the Olympic and later at Niblo’s. While at the latter place with Marsden he got up the original scenery for the ‘Black Crook.” He then painted the panorama, ‘The Mirror of Ireland,’ famous in the East some time ago, and traveled with it for four and a half years. When Grover and Call opened the old Adelphi in this city, Mr. Strong was induced to come West, and has remained here ever since, working in several of the first-class theaters.”

On February 19, 1888, “The Saint Paul Globe” of St. Paul, Minnesota, heralded Strong’s work as a scenic artist in an article entitled “Stage and Scenery.” In the section, “LOCAL AND GENERAL TALENT,” the article stated,  “Among the elder scenic artists of the country are David A. Strong, of Chicago, formerly of Niblo’s Garden, New York, should be mentioned as one of the best colorists, and indeed is an artist of high rank.”

Strong passed away on Feb 5, 1911. On Feb. 8, 1911, the “New Haven Evening Register” reported, “The funeral of David A. Strong, who died in Chicago, February 5, will be held at the sanctuary chapel of  Hayes & Pierce on Thursday afternoon at 2:00 o’clock. Mr. Strong was born in Windsor, Conn. In 1830 and came to New Haven a young man, where for several years he was well known as a decorative painter. Later he developed a great talent as a scenic artist and painted and arranged the scenery for the first theater ever opened in this city. Eventually he became noted throughout the country as an artist of the greatest ability in. his especial line. He was a 32^nd degree Mason and a member of Hiram Lodge, No. 1 F. and A.M. A man of sterling character and wide sympathies, he never forgot a brother in adversity and in his death all who knew him best can truly say that they have lost a generous and devoted friend.”

His wife Esther predeceased him on April 13, 1894, and Striong never really recovered from this loss. In 1900, the Federal Census listed Strong living at 295 Wabash Ave in South Town Chicago, one of many boarders at the residence of Mary LaRoche. By 1910, the Federal Census listed Strong living in Van Buren Street, again as a lodger. His occupation was still listed as “artist-painter.”

The significance of Strong’s passing in 1911 was more than the loss of an individual artist at Sosman & Landis, it signified the end of a generation at the studio. Moses wrote, “Our beloved David Strong fell dead on the Street February 5th.  He was a grand old man – past 80 years.” Strong’s influence in the production was replaced by a  younger generation of artists who employed an increasingly impressionist approach. Even under the supervision of Moses, there was a shift in both color palette and painting techniques.  The “old guard” that was once represented by both Strong and Joseph S.  Sosman quickly slipped away. Strong’s work represented an older generation of scenic artists, with a romantic rendition of picturesque landscapes and palatial interiors. Amazingly, some examples of Strong’s work survive and are still used at Scottish Rite theaters across the country. His stage art can be found at Masonic theaters in Austin, Texas, Yankton, South Dakota and Deadwood, South Dakota, Portland, Oregon, and Pasadena, California. Although Strong’s painting for commercial theater disappeared over a century ago, his work still lives on in Masonic degree productions.

To be continued…