COLLECTORS

Explanatory Timelines Names Index First Owners

REV. JAMES DOUGLAS (1753-1819)
of Rochester, Kent; and of Kenton, Suffolk

This is where the timeline of JMW Turner's first oils begins. It is shown elsewhere that JMW Turner exhibited an oil at the RA Exhibition of 1793. It is also shown elsewhere that JMW Turner visited Bristol in 1791 and again in 1792 (before the end of the RA Exhibition) at which point he had produced work entirely in watercolour. Thus the time when the first oils were produced must be later in 1792. These timings are found in Finberg 'The Life Of JMW Turner'. In July or September 1792 (more likely September) JMW Turner visited Kent and returning via Rochester produced his first oil at the behest of Rev. James Douglas, 'Rochester Castle and the Adjacent Ground' and started his second, which has been recorded as 'Rochester Castle with Fishermen Drawing Boats Ashore In A Gale of Wind' but has now been shown to be 'The Country Waggon, Snowdon - Early Morning' which he finished later at Foots Cray whilst visiting Rev. Robert Nixon.

Rev. James Douglas was also an artist but there is no entry for him in Graves 'Contributors'.

James Douglas was born in 1753 and was therefore in his late thirties to early forties when he became influential in Turner's life:

• 1753; birth.
• 1773 he was abroad at Tongres met Abbé P.G. van Muyssen. [Jessop page 19]
• 1777 as 'Jacobus' admitted Peterhouse Cambridge, matriculated 1778 [Jessop pages 21/22]
• 1778 probably, In Rochester, "first at St. Margaret's" [Jessop page 25].
• 1779, October; Commission in Sheerness, Kent [Jessop page 21]
• 1780, January; Marriage to Margaret Oldershaw in St. Marylebone.[FreeReg Record][Jessop page 26, but he is wrong about the £1000, Margaret was not entitled until death of James c.May1782.]
• 1780, After the marriage; after St. Margaret's; " in athe comfort of a quiet and commodious house in the shadow of the cathedral, College Yard. [Jessop page 25]. Could this have been Oldershaw's House?
• 1780 cJune Douglas elected to Society of Antiquaries [Jessop page 27].
• 1780, October; James Oldershaw in his will named James Douglas as Margaret's husband.
• 1782, May; James Oldershaw died.
• 1782 June 29th; baptism of Margaret Martha Whiteman Douglas, in Rochester Cathedral,and therefore probably born in May 1782. Margaret later owned JMW Turner's first oil mentioned above and gave it to her Nephew.
• 1783 December; He wrote a letter from Rochester. He mentions church duties in Rochester and Strood. Jessop mentions Douglas' 'collection of paintings'; including his own [Jessop pages 58-63].
• 1784, March; lived in London prob Little Stanhope Street. [Jessop page 79].
• 1785 Douglas had moved to a house in Little Stanhope Street, Mayfair (belonged to his family) [Jessop page 78]
• 1785 Moved from Stanhope Street to Conduit Vale, Blackheath [Jessop page 78]
• 1785 August 11th; birth of his son James Bruce Douglas. Registered in Greenwich, St. Alfege with baptism on 23rd September 1785. [FreeReg Record]
• 1785 October; he moved to Chiddingfold. [Jessop page 78]
• 1785 October, James Bruce Douglas died age 10 months, plaque in East end Chiddingfield church now covered. [Jessop page 88]
• 1787 March; Rector of Litchborough, Co. Northampton. for 12 years but did not live there Held together with Chiddingfold. Appointed chaplain in ordinary to HRH Prince of Wales. [Gentleman's Magazine vol 57 part 2 page 1130] [Jessop page 79 & 122]
• 1790, May. Douglas wrote a letter from Chiddingfold [Jessop page 116].

• 1792; This is odd - Douglas is living in Chiddingfold, why did he invite Turner to Rochester?

  On Jessop page 123: 3rd Earl of Egremont at Petworth, Sussex, has a studio for Turner. "Douglas then lived at Petworth" and Jessop thinks that this is where Douglas met Turner. However, this is completely at odds with the Nephew's Letter. Also 1794 below Douglas is still in Chiddingfold - not living in Petworth. It appears that Jessop is actually writing about 1809-1837; Turner's residence at Petworth.

• 1792 September; In Rochester; canvas purchased for JMW Turner. This date is derived from Finberg's analysis of Turner's attendances at the Royal Academy. Purchase of canvas by Margaret Martha Whiteman Douglas is recorded in the 'Nephew's Letter' written in 1857 and recorded in 'Once A Week' in 1862. [Finberg]...[Nephew's Letter][Clan Douglas papers]

• 1794 April 21st; baptism of Rev. James Douglas's son, James Edward Moreton Douglas, at Chiddingfold, Surrey [FreeReg Record]
• 1798 May 8th, baptism of his son Richard William Glode Douglas at Chiddingfold, Surrey [More Information]...[FreeReg Record] The name 'Glover' recorded in the FreeReg record is a typing error which is also reflected in some of our filenames.
• 1799 Resigned Litchborough. presented to Middleton.
• 1803 according to Jessop Douglas had to be in residence at Kenton.
• 1810, March - At Barnham Arundel, West Sussex, Douglas wrote the 'two fine boys' letter to Nichols.
• 1819 Rev James Douglas died "He left a widow, three sons and a daughter".

Rev. James Douglas as an Artist

Douglas's own work is of interest because he introduced Turner to oil painting, gave Turner his first oil paints and it was in Rochester that Turner acquired his first canvas. None of the references mention stretchers for the canvas and it may be that Turner painted on them unstretched. However, it is equally likely that Rev. Douglas had stretchers either new or secondhand which he gave to Turner. The question is whether stretchers on any of Rev. Douglas's own works are of a similar design to that on 'Squall at St Vincent's Rock, Bristol'.

According to his Wikipedia entry "Douglas painted portraits of his friends, both in oil and in miniature". There are no citations but a similar phrase appears in Dictionary of National Biography and on a website www.douglashistory.co.uk (much of which seems to be produced by AI and is just plain wrong - eg: reference to Lord Daphne and Marquis of Londonderry).

The Barrow Diggers (c1787)
Pen and Ink on paper
Size unknown