Samuel Lovett Waldo

Samuel Lovett Waldo (April 6, 1783 – February 16, 1861) was an American portrait painter. Early life & studies Waldo was born on April 6, 1783, in Windham, Connecticut, the son of Esther and Zacheus Waldo. At the age of sixteen, he moved to Hartford to begin his formal art training under the tutelage of Joseph Steward, a prominent local artist. Four years later, he set up shop as a portraitist in Hartford, later relocating to Litchfield, Connecticut. While in Hartford, he had made the acquaintance of congressman John Rutledge, Jr., who was impressed with his work and, in 1803, invited him to come to Charleston, South Carolina. From 1803 to 1805, Waldo earned a sizable income from his commissions and decided that he would use the money to study art in London. He studied under Benjamin West in London. He arrived in London in 1806 with letters of introduction to Benjamin West and John Singleton Copley. While studying with them, he also studied drawing at the Royal Academy and exhibited a portrait there in 1808.