Lewis Thomas Ives

     Lewis Thomas was born on Sunday, 4 August 1833 in Rochester, Monroe County, New York. He was the son of Eardlay Ives who was born in England. Lewis married Margaret Wright Leggett, daughter of Augustus Wright Leggett and Eliza Seaman, on 26 June 1860 in Waterford Township, Oakland County, Michigan, at the family home - "Mill Farm". At 12:15 pm by Rev. A. Taylor, Episcopal. Lewis & Margaret had children: Augustus Wright [6/21/1861-ca. 1953],Percival [6/05/1864-2/15/1928], son [d.y.], son [d.y.], son [d.y.], Valentine [5/ /1870-1917], Lewis . Augustus m. 1st Margaret Eugania Schnoor [1870-1897] & m. 2nd 7/31/1901 Julia Claire Chandler [8/25/1873-ca. 1963] & had children: Margaret [4/10/1903-7/17/2000], Chandler [8/10/1905-10/28/1920], & twin sons: Lewis Livingston & Clarence Chandler [circa 1907-d.y.]. Percival married 6/16/1890 Eliza Caron & had a son, Lewis. Valentine married 6/07/1899 Madge Lucile Hart [1/ /1875-] & had Janet [4/07/1900]][m. 3/01/1923-1953 Donald Duncan] & Thomas [1907- ]. Lewis was a renowned portrait artist and had received the commission to paint a protrait of President Glover Cleveland. He died before he was able to do the work and his son Percival was awarded the commission. Lewis also painted a portrait of Dr. Valentine Seaman from a miniture. This portrait, now considered a treasure, is displayed in the board colnference room in the Nes York City Hospital. He was also a lawyer. 6 July 1870, Lewis and his wife, Margaret, were listed on the U.S. Federal Census in Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan. Enumerated in this household were Lewis T. Ives [35 England], his wife: Minnie [26 New York], children: Augustus [9 Michigan], Percival [6 Michigan], Valentine [2 mos. Michigan], Lewis [2 mos. Michigan], & Anna Gallager [23 Canada].³ 15 June 1880, Lewis and Margaret was listed on the U.S. Federal Census at Detroit. Enumerated in this household were Corydon C. Randall [39 Canada], his wife: Anna S. [32 New York], childrenb: Lida S. [11 Michigan], Huntley B. [5 Michigan], Ferris S. [3 Michigan]. Lewis T. Ives [46 New York][border-artist], Lewis' wife, Margaret [36 New York], Augustus Ives [19 Michigan], Percival S. Ives [16 Michigan], Valentine S. Ives [9 Michigan], & servants: Bertha Neuman [20 Michigan] & Flora McDermitt [22 Scotland]. Corydon was a photographer.⁴ Lewis died on Thursday, 13 December 1894 in Detroit at age 61 years, 4 months and 9 days

Obituary: In the death of Lewis T. Ives, Detroit has lost one of her nobelist citizens. He was a man of superior intellectualty, grand intellegence, and sound judgement; an artist of great industry and much more than ordinary talent; a careful, conscientious, pain staking man in every thing he undertook, and withal was possesses of that kindness of heart and affability of manner which stamped him the inborn gentleman.l As a trustee of that promising public instution the Detroit Museum of Art, no one has done more to mold it and give it the impression of success and usefulness than Lewis T. Ives, certainly no one has given to it gratuously more of valuable time. As a painter, his modesty kept him from undertaking the work he was csapable of and which would have given him a substancial reputation. While perhaps not to be compared with his great idols, Tinias and Valesquez. His Detroit friends and patrons will never be convinced he was not really a great portrait painter. A few years ago Secator Palmer sat for his portrait to all western artist of the highest reputation, a member of the National yet not one in a hundred the work when finished could have done it better. It is safe to say that every portrait is worth..

He was buried there in Detroit in the Elmwood Cemetery.⁵