Biography
Family
William French was born to: Anne Richardson (1811–1856), daughter of William Merchant Richardson (1774–1838), chief justice of New Hampshire, and Henry Flagg French (1813–1885) His siblings were Henriette Van Mater French Hollis (1839–1911), Sarah Flagg French Bartlett (1846–1883), and Daniel Chester French (1850–1931) William French was born of pure New England heritage. The earliest French ancestor, Edward French, came to the shores of New England in 1630, just 10 years after the establishment of the Plymouth Colony. His grandfathers on both sides of his family fought in the American Revolution. His father was a lawyer, judge, and agricultural expert who would later go on to found the Massachusetts agricultural college. His father excelled in matters of farming and lead to a deep understanding of the early efforts in civil engineering. William’s mother Anne Richardson was the daughter of William Merchant Richardson of Chester, New Hampshire. William Merchant Richardson was also the Chief Justice of New Hampshire.Early life
William, or Will as he was known to his family, was described as “a handsome boy, with black hair and brown eyes. Quick-witted and energetic, a born student, he was up among the first three or four in his class of forty. He was a very imaginative little boy, very resourceful, with a mind that went like lightning. He was forever urging his little brother on to a new activity.” The French family would often spend the winter in Washington, DC with family and a month each summer at the family farm in Chester. William was 13 when his mother died in 1853 after several years of illness. Three years after Anne Richardson's death, on September 29, 1859, his father married Pamela Mellen Prentice. In 1860 the family moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where they took up residence next to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. During a snowstorm while living in Cambridge, Dan and Will sculpted a "mother lioness and her little cub". Mr. Longfellow expressed his admiration for the piece with a large group of observers present. In 1860 William began his studies at Harvard University and graduated in 1864.Marriages
On September 9, 1879, he married Sarah Moody Lovejoy of Princeton, Illinois. She died in 1881, leaving no children. Nine years later, French married Alice Helm, daughter of Henry Thomas Helm and Julia (Lathrop) Helm, of Chicago, Illinois. They had two children: Henry Helm French (1891-1970) and Prentiss French (1894-1989).Career
After the Chicago Fire destroyed his landscaping practice with H. W. S. Cleveland, French turned to the fine arts and began teaching at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts. In 1878, he became Secretary for the Chicago Academy of Design that later became the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts (1879), which was then reorganized as the Art Institute of Chicago (1882). With the name change to the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, French’s title changed from Secretary to Director, thus making him the first director of the Art Institute. He oversaw the daily operations of both the school and the museum, working closely with Board PresidentTimeline
*1843 Born : Exeter New Hampshire *1856 Mother Dies French is only 13 *1859 Father marries Pamela Mellen Prentice *1860 Moves to Cambridge MA, lives in rented house in the back of the Home of Longfellow *1860 Attendants Harvard University *1864 Graduates from Harvard *1864 May to August Corporal in 12th Mass unattached *1865 Cambridge,MA engineering office of J. Herbert She'd of Boston *1867 Chicago,Illinois office of S.S. Greeley City Surveyor *1868 Albany, Indiana Asst. Engineer for Ship Canal *1869 Chicago,Illinois Asst. Engineer board of Public works *1870 Chicago,Illinois independent office *1871 Chicago,Illinois landscaping and engineering practice with H. W. S. Cleveland *1874 Chicago,Illinois begins to lecture and write about Art *1878 Chicago,Illinois Secretary Chicago Academy of Design *1879 Marries Sarah Moody Lovejoy of Princeton, IL *1881 Wife Sarah Moody Lovejoy dies *1881 Moves to Minnesota in October *1882 Moves to Massachusetts in summer of 1862 *1883 Supervising Architect of the Treasury until fall 1884 *1884 Returns to Chicago in October and becomes the first Director of The Art Institute of Chicago. *1889 Visits Europe *1890 Marries Alice Helm of Chicago *1891 Son Henry Helm French was born *1894 Son Prentiss French was born *1914 French Dies in ChicagoReferences
{{DEFAULTSORT:French, William M.R. 1843 births 1914 deaths Harvard University alumni Directors of the Art Institute of Chicago Phillips Exeter Academy alumni