Josiah E Chase House, East Limington Maine

Pencil sketch / study of Josiah Chase Octagon House – Limington Maine.

I’m amazed at how on location sketches speak to me even after more than twenty years.

This sketch was completed shortly after I began painting – more than twenty years ago.  There are so many things that I observed, consciously or not, at the time that I was not able to paint – but the painting brings those memories back.  

This octagon house was in the process of being restored to its former glory.  Even unrestored there was an elegance about the house and surrounding property.  The house is surrounded by massive oak trees and overlooks the Ossipe and Saco Rivers.  The house was built @ 1858 for sea captain Josiah Chase (1819-1898) and his family.  His children left a momento (their initials) carved into one of the widow’s walk windows along with the date (which I can’t recall).

The painting below was done on location.  It was a beautiful, breezy day and I set up in the shade of one of the oak trees.  I completed another painting, a watercolor, during this visit as well.  I need to destroy the painting, it was badly damaged in a flood a few years back, but before I did I wanted to make another sketch using the on location painting for inspiration.  I’ve squared off some larger drawing paper with margins for notes, as well as for mattes, and I wanted to see how this might work.

I’ll use the sketch and notes for a larger work in watercolor and oils, perhaps doing similar views in different seasons.

I would also like to reach out to the current home owners to see if they would mind if I did some more work on location!  While researching online I found some very interesting information on Josiah E. Chase including an abstract of a journal kept by Chase on a voyage before he was promoted to captain.

Log/journal, kept by Josiah E. Chase, relating to a whaling voyage to the Atlantic, South Pacific, and Indian oceans.  Includes descriptions of types of whales seen or taken, collision at sea, death at sea, badly damaged ship sailing to Sydney, Australia, for repairs after being set on fire by members of crew at Fiji, smoking ship for stowaways, indigenous people, punishment on ship, and shipwrecks including the ship Russell (1847); and whale stamps, accounts, poetry, and crew members names mentioned thoughout log. Other places represented include Lord Howe Island (N.S.W.), Bay of Islands, and Tonga.

National Maritime Digital Library

It's all about the sea...

American Offshore Whaling Voyages: A Database

•  Voyages of Chase, Josiah E. 

Vessel Departure Arrival Hailing Port Destination Sperm Whale Bone Source

Martha (Ship)

1850, May 1853, Nov New Bedford, MA New Zealand 1724 158 700 *

Elizabeth Swift (Bark)

1854, Nov 1858, Oct New Bedford, MA Pacific 1781 0 0 *

Elizabeth Swift (Bark)

1859, May 1863, Sep New Bedford, MA Pacific 1356 80 1800 *

Hunter (Bark)

1867, Dec 1871, Jul New Bedford, MA Pacific 2441 36 0 *

California (Ship)

1872, Aug 1876, Aug New Bedford, MA New Zealand 2600 200 1500 *

James Arnold (Ship)

1878, Oct 1882, Sep New Bedford, MA Pacific 1370 180 0 *

I don’t know how families survived these long periods of absences (four year whaling voyages).  

His wife accompanied him on at least one voyage – their daughter was born at sea.  At least they had a good sixteen years after his retirement to enjoy their home together.  Imagine the stories we’d hear if these walls could talk.