John Philip Fondé
John Philip Fondé
American, 1794–1831
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The recent discovery of a small hand-painted signature in red on the seat rail of the chair at the Philadelphia Museum of Art has brought to light the name of John P. Fondé, the son of a French émigré, who was presumably the ornamenter of the set of chairs. Philadelphia directories of the period reveal that he was listed in 1819 as a sign painter at 47 Chestnut Street. Washington directories simultaneously list him from 1818 through 1822 as well. That said, directories were often somewhat out of date by the time they were published, which might explain this apparent duplication. In December 1819 Fondé married Elizabeth Stuart of Baltimore, and in 1820 he was advertising for an assistant in "ornamental painting, japanning, etc." Curiously, in November 1820 Fondé declared bankruptcy but by 1822 he was back in the Washington D.C. directories until 1830. In 1830-31 Fondé went to New Orleans with his wife, and he died there in December 1831. Despite the fact that he was already deceased, Fonde appears in the 1833 Baltimore Directory. After his death, Fonde's wife and children moved to Mobile, Alabama.
Person TypePerson
American, partnership active 1828–1831
American, 1758–1820, active c. 1780–1816
American, born Germany, 1764–1851
English, active 1813–1830
American, 1820–after 1877
