 Artist's
Sketchbook
Henry Worrall wasn't born in Kansas. He wasn't a
trained artist, either. That didn't stop him from using art to promote
his adopted state.
Worrall was born in England in 1825, and immigrated to Kansas in 1868.
As a young man, he devoted his time to music, but took up oil painting
after settling in Topeka. Soon, Topekans knew Worrall for his portraits
and caricatures. He gained national attention for his
painting entitled Drouthy Kansas,
which exaggerated the state's climate and record-breaking crop production.
The painting encouraged people to come to Kansas for a prosperous life.
Drouthy Kansas was the beginning of Worrall's career as the
state's unofficial public relations champion. Harper's
Weekly and Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper published his
illustrations without giving him credit. In 1876 Worrall designed the
Kansas exhibit for the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition.
The artist's ability to promote did not go unnoticed. The Atchison,
Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad Company (ATSF) hired Worrall
to illustrate The Rocky Mountain Tourist, a magazine used to
attract visitors to the mountains. He also drew images of Kansas that
the railroad put in pamphlets encouraging people to settle and farm
in the state.
Worrall used the sketchbook shown here in 1882, while
he traveled across Kansas, Colorado, and New Mexico for ATSF. It seems
more personal than a mere collection of preparatory drawings or paintings.
The book resembles a journal, giving the viewer a glimpse of the open
prairie, the rolling hills, and early settlements as the artist saw
them. Worrall titled the book "Record of the Skies,"
which is reflected throughout the first few pages. Each day he painted
a small depiction of the sky at a certain time, noting it beneath the
image.
After a few weeks of travel, Worrall expanded from the horizon and
began painting landscapes, buildings, figures, and animals. Worrall
noted the spring day when grass first appeared by writing "Green!"
below the painting. His sense of humor comes through
in paintings of a man-sized jackrabbit and a horse pulling a wagon,
with "Ya Wild Horse!" written below. The second half of the
book is filled with photos of Worrall's family and Topeka locations,
as well as preliminary sketches for railroad pamphlets.
Worrall worked for the railroad until 1893, and continued to paint
for pleasure for a few years before giving it up entirely. He died in
Topeka in 1902. Several of his paintings and two sketchbooks, including
this one, are housed in the collections of the Kansas
Museum of History.
View other pages from Worrall's sketchbook:
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