Joseph Lewis Cunningham

Joseph Lewis Cunningham (1784–1843) or J. L. Cunningham worked as an auctioneer in Boston, Massachusetts, in the first half of the 19th century. Among the many lots he sold were birds, horses, real estate, furniture, sea captains' charts, telescopes, American and European artworks, fishing line, feathers, fabric, guns, musical instruments, fruit trees, flower seeds, printers' equipment, and books.

Biography

His business partners included John J. Linzee (Linzee & Cunningham, India Wharf)

In the early 1820s he conducted his auctioneering from nos. 2-3 Liberty Square; a fire in 1825 forced him to move. In 1826 he built Corinthian Hall, at the corner of Milk Street and Federal Street, and used "the first floor of the building for his extensive auction rooms." "Mr. J. L. Cunningham has erected a noble building... where formerly stood the mansion... of Judge Paine. It has a number of fine halls in the second and third stories, and on the lower floor, is a spacious and commodious auction room; adjoining which, on each street, are several neat and elegant shops. The halls will be much wanted, and Mr. Cunningham is entitled to some thanks for thus arranging his costly building to the public convenience and accommodation."

Portrait of Sarah Inman Linzee (1st wife of J.L. Cunningham), by Gilbert Stuart, early 19th century

He married three times, in 1807 to Sarah Inman Linzee (1787-1820), in 1821 to Mary Ann Inman (d.1825), and in 1828 to Catherine Amory. He lived in Boston on Somerset Street (c. 1807) He attended Trinity Church.

He died in 1843, and was "buried in vault no.32 under old Trinity Church, Boston, afterwards removed to Mt. Auburn cemetery in Cambridge." A trade auction of "books, stereotype plates and stationery, formerly held by J.L. Cunningham" brought in an "amount... unusually large, between 80 and 100,000 dollars."

Auctions conducted by J.L Cunningham 1815 "Many thousand volumes of standard European and American publications," "the whole stock of books and stationery of the late firm of West & Blake" "Entire stock of Col. John Boyle, bookseller" 1820 Library of Jacob Abbot Cummings (Blake & Cunningham)

1823 "Furniture of a lady leaving the city," including "astral lamp - portable desk - an elegant urn" "330 bales Russia feathers" 1824 "50 dozen 18-thread cod lines... 5 sacks first quality live geese feathers" "1 brass turning lathe; a small lot of seamen's clothing; 100 lbs. Bologna sausages; a few boxes of Spanish cigars, &c." 1841 "The celebrated Conway Medicines... recipes, medicines prepared and ready to be sent out" "Private library... of a gentleman deceased... A solar microscope" "Valuable cow and calf" "Elegant oil paintings... 64... original pictures and facsimile copies... from some of the most celebrated pictures in... the Louvre, the Hague and Amsterdam" at Harding's Gallery "That valuable estate, no.57 Mount Vernon Street," Beacon Hill 1842 "Collection of beautiful green-house plants - among them many fine varieties of roses, callas, verbenas, heliotropes, azalias" "French fruit trees, just imported... varieties of... apples, plums, apricots, cherries, peaches, and grape vines" "Dutch canary birds, chiefly good singers" "Parlor organs" "About 30 oil paintings, recently finished by C. Drew... views of well known places in America, chiefly in the neighborhood of Boston: among them several views of Boston Light, storm, shipwreck, several views of the coast of England, &c."