Ferdinand A. Brader

Ferdinand A. Brader was an itinerant artist and known for his large pencil drawings of farms and other dwellings in Pennsylvania and Ohio. He was born in Switzerland in 1833, although his exact birthplace is unknown. He migrated to Pennsylvania in the United States sometime around 1870, most likely through Philadelphia.

Art

His first pencil drawings of farms and homes were done while he was in Pennsylvania as early as 1876. He did some 300+ pictures in Pennsylvania but the exact number is not known. Most of his Pennsylvania pictures were done in Berks County but others drawings were rendered in Lancaster Co., Montgomery Co., Lebanon Co. and as far west as Somerset and Allegheny Counties.

-->"Residence of Joseph and Anna Gindelsperger, Baughman Tp., Wayne Co., Ohio 1888"," from the Darwin D. Bearley Collection.

Most of his drawings are quite large, some measuring as much as 52 by 36 inches. There may very well be some larger. Most were done using only graphite pencil, however, in 1890 Brader started incorporating the use of colored pencils into his drawings as well.

His Ohio drawings first appeared around 1879, and he continued to draw for at least 16 more years, returning to Pennsylvania several times to do additional drawings there. The Ohio drawings were done in Portage, Medina, Wayne, Stark, Summit, Carroll, and Columbiana counties.

An expert letterer, Brader included bold captions across the bottom of the vast majority of his pictures, stating the resident or owner's name, the township, the county and year of the drawing was rendered.

Brader also numbered most of his drawings and from these numbers we know that he did at least 992 scenes. Known pictures are dated through 1895. Many of his Pennsylvania drawings are not numbered. These numbers can usually be found next to his signature.

Brader was an infrequent patient at the Portage Co. Infirmary (Poor House) in Ravenna, Ohio. Records of the infirmary show that he was there from December 12, 1891 through April 19th, 1892 and cite his birth in Switzerland as being in 1833. These records state that the reason for his stay was, "mind impairment" and that he was, "insane". It also states that he had asthma,"very bad but got better of it and left for himself". Although he did more drawings after this, very little else is known about his later years. Some believe that he may have returned to Germany of Switzerland.Europe.

Brader’s drawings can be found in the collections of The Canton Museum of Art, Canton, Ohio; The William McKinley Museum & Library, Canton, Ohio; The Portage County Historical Society, Ravenna, Ohio.

In Pennsylvania Brader's drawings can be found at the Landis Valley Museum in Lancaster, PA.; the Historical Society of Berks County in Reading, PA.; The Library Company of Philadelphia in Philadelphia, Pa. and the Thomas R. Brendle Memorial Library and Museum in Schefferstown, Pa.

The Chicago Art Institute, Chicago, IL; The Metropolitan Museum, New York City and the American Museum of Folk Art, New York City all have examples in their collections as well. There are also numerous examples in private collections.