Lot 2399

WILLIAM CHARLES ANTHONY FRERICHS (DUTCH / AMERICAN, 1829-1905) NORTH CAROLINA LANDSCAPE PAINTING

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WILLIAM CHARLES ANTHONY FRERICHS (DUTCH / AMERICAN, 1829-1905) NORTH CAROLINA LANDSCAPE PAINTING

Estimate: $5,000 - $8,000

Starting Bid: $2,500

(0 Bids)

by Jeffrey S. Evans & Associates
June 27, 2026 9:00 AM EDT
Live Auction
2177 Green Valley Lane
Mt. Crawford, VA, US 22841

WILLIAM CHARLES ANTHONY FRERICHS (DUTCH / AMERICAN, 1829-1905) NORTH CAROLINA LANDSCAPE PAINTING, oil on canvas, depicting the joining of two rivers with dramatic waterfalls and rapids moving over rocks, a fisherman can be seen in the foreground drawing back his fly rod. Initialed "WF" along the bottom edge. Housed in the likely original period gilt gesso frame. Third quarter 19th century. 29 1/4" x 45 1/4" sight, 41" x 56" OA.
Catalogue Note: Born in Ghent, Netherlands, William Charles Anthony Frerichs (1829-1905) studied art from a young age at The Hague before emigrating to New York in 1850. By 1854 Frerichs moved to North Carolina accepting a job as professor of arts and languages at Greensboro Female College (now Greensboro College). During his time in North Carolina, he painted numerous depictions of the Sauratown Mountains and the area around the popular Piedmont Springs spa. Many of his works feature an area called Tamahaka in Cherokee Co., the majority featuring waterfalls in this region, but there's some conflicting information regarding whether or not this was a semi-fanciful region invented by Frerichs or whether it was a real place which is now flooded by Fontana Lake. Many stories, which are probably embellished, detail harrowing plots of Frerichs's treacherous journeys into the mountains to paint including one instance where Native Americans stole his painting equipment and he had to bargain with them to get it back.
Tragedy struck in 1863 when Frerichs's studio burned in a fire at Greensboro College. Around the same time, he was conscripted by the Confederate Army to serve as a civil engineer near the Sauratown Mountains and evidently was captured by Union Troops on at least three occasions. He and his family then moved to eastern North Carolina briefly, taking care during their journey to avoid run-ins with the Confederate and Union armies by taking irregular routes. After a failed farming endeavor at their new home, the family returned to New York by 1865.
Frerichs remained in New York for the remainder of his life, and it's thought that many of his North Carolina scenes are painted during this time from sketches and memory of his life there.

  • Provenance:

    From the estate collection of Steven Suggs, Goochland, VA.

  • Condition:

    Very good original condition with typical minor looseness to the canvas; the stretcher with moderate insect damage; scattered minor touch-up inpainting mainly around the edges where typical minor tears and paint losses are present. The frame with typical minor to moderate losses with some scattered repairs and areas of touch-up to the likely original finish.

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Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $199 $10
$200 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $2,999 $100
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $29,999 $1,000
$30,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 + $10,000