Historic Rock Ford, 881 Rockford Road, Lancaster, has announced a new Focus Exhibit in the Snyder Gallery for its 2023 season. The exhibit is "The Market Town and the Metropolis: 18th-Century Lancaster and Its Artistic Connections to Philadelphia."

Throughout most of the 18th century, Philadelphia remained the largest city in the American colonies and then in the fledgling United States. In many ways, it was America's political, financial and cultural epicenter. During this same period, the borough of Lancaster was one of the largest non-coastal towns in America and was closely tied to Philadelphia both commercially and culturally. In addition to serving as a source of raw materials, food and supplies for Philadelphia as well as an important market for its elegantly crafted goods, Lancaster, through which passed the "great wagon road," increasingly came to serve as Philadelphia and its port's gateway to western settlement. This already strong connection was both manifested by and strengthened with the completion of the Lancaster-Philadelphia Turnpike in 1794, the first long-distance macadam road in the new United States.

With Lancaster's growing affluence and stronger ties to Philadelphia as the 18th century progressed, the connections between both in the fields of the decorative arts increasingly flourished. Lancaster furniture makers developed unique styles that, while clearly influenced by Philadelphia artisans, did not merely mimic them. Artisans, such as furniture makers Thomas Tufft and Peter Frick, worked in both Lancaster and in Philadelphia. Examples of works attributed to both men will be included in this exhibit and demonstrate influences from both Philadelphia and Lancaster.

The exhibit will also highlight local tastemakers who were exposed to new styles through their personal connections to Philadelphia and brought these styles to Lancaster. The exhibit will include a rare, late 18th-century Philadelphia Chippendale camelback sofa believed to have belonged to Judge Jasper Yeates; the sofa is part of a private family collection and has never before been publicly exhibited.

Also included among Lancaster County tastemakers were affluent persons who had their portraits painted in Philadelphia. The exhibit features a portrait of Lancaster County Judge Henry Slaymaker by John Hesselius and a portrait of Henry's wife, Faithful Richardson Slaymaker, by John's father, Gustavus Hesselius, an early Swedish immigrant to Philadelphia. These portraits are also part of a private collection and have not been publicly exhibited since 1971 at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.

The Richard C. von Hess Foundation is the Founding Sponsor for this exhibit. This exhibit is also funded in part through a grant approved by the Americana Corner Preserving America Grant Program.

Admission to the 2023 Focus Exhibit is included with the purchase of an admission ticket. This Focus Exhibit will run through Tuesday, Oct. 31.

For more information about Historic Rock Ford, visit http://www.historicrockford.org.