The sixth son of Painter Weidenbach, Karl Augustus, was born in Naumburg an der Saale on the 25th of May 1825. Like his elder brothers, Ernst and Max, he would have received his first drawing training from his father.

It is not known whether he, like his elder brother Ernst, attended the Dresden Academy of Art. However, in 1847 when he was 22 years old , he was described as a painter and was living at home in Naumburg. In 1848 he exhibited at the Berlin Art Academy.

In the early 1850s (before 1853) Karl Augustus emigrated to North America, travelling and painting in Nth California, Yosemite Pk., Virginia, W. Virginia & Maryland. By 1861, when the Civil War started, he had established a reputation as an early German-American artist.

He was married to Frederika (surname unknown) who was born in Germany in 1825 and emigrated to the USA in 1845. After Karl's death Frederika lived with her family in New York City and she died on 3/6/1908 in Manhattan.

Karl and Frederika had two children: Edward who was born in Maryland in 1859 and Laura who was born in Maryland in 1861.

Census records show that in 1864 he was working as a professor and drawing and painting, in Baltimore Maryland and he was still resident there in 1870. In about 1876 he painted a portrait of George Washington based on an earlier portrait by Gilbert Stuart. Karl August died before 1890 and in 1891 his children were living in New York.

Please click on an image below to enlarge it.
Belvedere Plantation 1858 Yellowstone Falls Harper's Ferry pre 1861

Belvedere Plantation, Virginia

Karl Augustus Weidenbach 1858

"The Art of American Architecture"
http://www.nd.edu/~tschlere/artarch/housing/belvedere.htm

Yosemite Falls

Karl Augustus Weidenbach

www.askart.com

Harpers Ferry National Monument

Karl August Weidenbach, pre 1861

U.S. National Parks - "The National Park Story in History"

 George Washington 
 

George Washington,

A. Weidenbach 1876

after Gilbert Stuart 1755-1828

Library of Congress     http://www.loc.gov/
 

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DOCUMENTS and REFERENCES

A1. The following data has been extracted from the Naumburg "Inhabitants Book" by Dr Siegfried Wagner, Director of Naumburg Stadtmuseum and Frau Susanne Kröner, Head of Naumburg Town Archives.

Einwohnerbuch Naumburg T-Z 1826-1840; 1841-1850; 1851
Lfd. Nr. 810: Weidenbach, Carl August: Sohn des Malers W. *23. Mai 1825 in Naumburg; Wohnung wie oben; Maler: 13.9.1847: 779; [Th.B.: Landschaftsmaler in Naumburg a.d.S., 19. Jh. Stellte 1848 in der Berliner Akademie aus (Abendlandsch.). Buchwerk: Das malerische und romanische Saal- und Unstruttal, mit Stahlstichen nach Original_Zeichnungen von A. W’ und histor. erlaüterndem Texte. Leipzig 1844.]

A2. The 1870 Maryland Census includes the following entries for Karl Augustus and his for younger brother Louis. (http://www.mdarchives.state.md.us/msa/stagser/s400/s453/html/ssi0453w.html )

WEIDENBACH, LOUIS
Age: 36 Sex: M Race: W Birthplace: PRUS. Locality: 15-WD BALTIMORE    Film No.: M 7243 Page: 84 MSA S 453-1-105466

WEIDENBACH, AUGUST
Age: 45 Sex: M Race: W Birthplace: SAXO. Locality: 19-WD BALTIMORE    Film No.: M 7245 Page: 325 MSA S 453-1-105467
(Naumburg an der Saale was part of Saxony until Upper Saxony was annexed by Prussia in 1815, and it seems that Karl August may have preferred to have been identified as a Saxon rather than a Prussian.)

A3. The 1864 Baltimore City Directory Project lists:
WEIDENBACH AUGUST artist and professor of drawing and painting 26 Pearl Street
( http://www.geocities.com/pauledely/1864/w2.html )

A4. The website "AskArt" identifies Karl Augustus Weidenbach and some of his work. ( http://www.askart.com/AskART/artist.aspx?artist=85987&redir)

A5. The Hambleton Print Collection, Baltimore, contains the following work by August Weidenbach.
H61 Baltimore (set of city views), 1861, Weidenbach, 30 x 40, dr 23
(http://www.mdhs.org/explore/library/HambletonPrintCollection.html)

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