Sheldon Peck

Sheldon Peck (August 26, 1797 – March 19, 1868) was an American folk artist, conductor on the Underground Railroad, and social activist. Peck's portraiture – with its distinctive style – is a prime example of 19th century American folk art. He also become known for advocating abolitionism, racial equality, temperance, public education, women's rights, and pacifism.

Early life and education Peck was born in Cornwall, Vermont, the ninth son of Jacob and Elizabeth Peck. Peck's ancestors helped found the New Haven Colony; his father worked as a blacksmith and served as a private in the Revolutionary War.

Peck married Harriet Corey (1806–1887) in 1825 and the couple eventually had thirteen children. The Peck family moved to Jordan, New York in 1828 and lived there until moving westward to Chicago in 1836. A year later Peck finally settled in Babcock's Grove (now Lombard) approximately twenty-five miles west of Chicago. On his 160 acres of farmland, Peck built a -story timber-frame house (completed in 1839) that still stands today. He grew crops and raised Merino sheep, the latter being a way to produce raw material for clothes without supporting the Southern-based cotton industry and its use of African slave labor. No records exist to indicate that Peck received any formal art education. His work may have been influenced by William Jennys, a primitive portrait painter who was active in Vermont around the time Peck lived there. Peck also would have had access to art instruction texts that were housed in the library of the Cornwall Young Gentleman's Society.

New York Period, 1828–1836 Upon his arrival in New York in 1828, Peck continued to paint half-length portraits on wood panels as he had in Vermont. He did, however, begin to use a somewhat brighter color palette and began embellishing his subjects with personal accessories such as jewelry, Bibles, fruit, decorated furniture, and swags of drapery in the background. These were popular portrait conventions during the period and suggest that Peck was influenced by – or at the very least, observed – the work of other artists. In addition to working for the Western Citizen, Peck was a delegate for the Liberty Party – a political party whose main focus was the abolition of slavery. Peck was also a member of the DuPage County Anti-Slavery Society (part of the Illinois State Anti-Slavery Society). In 1856, Peck served as a DuPage County delegate to the Illinois State Abolitionism Convention, which a New York Times article at the time dubbed a "Convention of Radical Abolitionists," meaning that the ideas expressed went beyond ending slavery but encompassed racial equality as well. In addition to working with abolitionist parties, Peck would often invite guest speakers to his home to lecture about the evils of slavery. Two prominent African-American speakers who came to the Peck house were Johnny Jones (a free-born mulatto who was active in the Chicago anti-slavery movement and was an associate of John Brown) and H. Ford Douglass (an escaped slave who was a celebrated orator and friend of Frederick Douglass).

Underground Railroad Numerous accounts exist to confirm that Peck actively worked as a conductor on the Underground Railroad. It is generally believed that Peck would hide freedom seekers on his property and then move them via wagon to Chicago. This would enable the freedom seekers to travel to Canada via rail or the Great Lakes. Another possible route was along the Fox Valley (many of whose residents hired Peck to paint their portraits) northward on foot or canoe along the Fox River to Wisconsin and thence Canada. (Escaping to Canada was necessary after the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 became law, because escaped slaves could still be returned to bondage even if they reached free states in the North.) Peck traveled frequently throughout north eastern Illinois to paint his subjects and this travel provided a cover for his Underground Railroad work.

Frank Peck also recounts the slave spirituals that he sang with the freedom seekers at his family's home, in particular the songs sung by an Underground Railroad conductor (and escaped slave) known as "Old Charley":

Roll on tibler moon, guide the tabler not astray Whilest the nightingale song is in full tune While I sadly complain to the moon.

(Sung in slave dialect, "tibler moon" is thought to be the "traveling moon" – a full, bright moon whose light would aid escapees during their journey.) Frank Peck's daughter also recalled how freedom seekers were, "hid in barns around the [Peck] homestead, then carried away the next day in a load of hay on their way to the Canadian border and freedom."

Sheldon Peck and his wife Harriet, c. 1860. Harriet was also active in various social movements.

Temperance The anti-slavery and temperance movements were closely linked in the 19th century, and Peck advocated for both causes. Peck held temperance meetings on his property, and they were often advertised in the abolitionist Western Citizen newspaper. Additionally, the Peck family would host "temperance picnics at the Grove," an opportunity for Chicagoans to enjoy a day-long, liquor-free excursion to Peck's farm in Babcock's Grove. Like many people at the time, Peck believed that liquor led to a variety of social and health problems. His youngest son, Frank Peck, recounted how prevalent the idea of temperance was while growing up:

The temperance movement was much discussed...I am sorry to say that many of my friends and acquaintances have filled untimely graves from the effect of strong drink with deliriums and often troubles caused from it and I have helped care for some of them and have only one conclusion, it is a good thing to shun entirely.

Death and legacy Peck died on March 19, 1869, survived by his wife and ten of his thirteen children. He is buried in the Lombard Cemetery. His youngest son, Frank, kept a diary which historians find very useful in documenting negro spirituals as well as the Underground Railroad.

Sheldon Peck Homestead Sheldon Peck's 1839 house was donated to the Lombard Historical Society by his granddaughter. It is now operated as the Sheldon Peck Homestead, a museum dedicated to Peck's work as an activist and artist. The house is listed on the register of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom as a confirmed Underground Railroad site. In 2022, an Illinois State Historical Society historical marker, co-sponsored by the Lombard Historical Society and the William G. Pomeroy Foundation, was added to the site.

Value of his work The value of Peck's art has risen considerably over the years, mirroring the rise in status of folk and primitive art. His paintings can be seen at museums around the United States including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Chicago History Museum, and the American Folk Art Museum in New York City. Because Peck never signed his work, "new" Peck portraits are constantly being discovered.