Emily Caroline Noyes

Female

June 21, 1842

February 20, 1939

New York, NY

Litchfield, CT

John Aaron Vanderpoel (May 22, 1865)

Emily Noyes Vanderpoel was born Emily Caroline Noyes in New York City on June 21, 1842. She was the daughter of William Curtis Noyes and Julia Tallmadge Noyes. She was educated in private schools in New York and studied art with Robert Swain Gifford and William Sartain. She married John Aaron Vanderpoel on May 22, 1865. The couple had one son, John Arent Vanderpoel.

As a painter, Vanderpoel used primarily watercolor, but also painted with oils. Her work "Ypres" was displayed at the National Museum in Washington, D.C. Several of her works are in the collection of the Litchfield Historical Society. Her books on art include American Lace and Lace-Makers and Color Problems: A Practical Manual for the Lay Student of Color. She was vice-president of the New York Watercolor ...Club and a member of the National Arts Club, the municipal Art Society, the Association of Women Painters and Sculptors.

An avid collector, Vanderpoel amassed a large collection of Japanese art which she donated to the Norwich museum, and a collection of art pottery which she donated to the Litchfield Historical Society.

Vanderpoel's interest in Litchfield came from her own heritage. She was the great-granddaughter of Benjamin Tallmadge, and purchased his home on North Street in Litchfield. She was an active member and first curator of the Litchfield Historical Society (then the Litchfield County Historical and Antiquarian Society). In that role, she collected the papers and artifacts of Litchfield during the early republic. She created the Society's shield, which served as its logo for many years, and was involved in its first incorporation in the 1890s. The Noyes Memorial Building, given by her son as a town library and room for the Historical Society, was completed after his death. Vanderpoel had a memorial stained glass window and a bronze tablet installed in his memory. She also funded the 1907 addition to the building. Perhaps her greatest contribution was her extensive research and devotion to documenting the students who attended the Litchfield Female Academy. She used the materials she collected in authoring a two volume history of the school, Chronicles of a Pioneer School and More Chronicles of a Pioneer School.

In 1899, a year after becoming a member, Vanderpoel helped organize a Litchfield chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, which was named for her great-grandmother Mary Floyd Tallmadge. She was also a member of the Litchfield Garden Club and the Colonial Dames of America.

Vanderpoel died on Feb. 20, 1939 at the age of 96, and is buried in East Cemetery in Litchfield.
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Private schools in New York
Studied art with R. Swain Gifford and William Sartain

"Emily Noyes Vanderpoel, Artist and Author Water-Colorist, Painter of 'Ypres' Now in Washington Museum, dies at 96" New York Times February 21, 1939, p. 25.

"Mrs. Emily Vanderpoel Died in New York Mon." The Litchfield Enquirer February 23, 1939, p. 1, 7.