42 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1907. 
a number of paintings, reproductions of celebrated pieces of sculpture, busts of 
distinguished individuals, and many important books on art. 
The early exhibition in the upper Smithsonian hall consisted mainly of the 
unique collections of Indian portraits and scenes by J. M. Stanley, C. B. King, 
and others, but in the fire of 1865 this section of the gallery with its contents 
was entirely destroyed. The objects on the lower floor escaped injury and were 
subsequently deposited for safe-keeping in the Library of Congress and the 
Corcoran Gallery of Art, where they remained until about ten years ago. Since 
that time one of the rooms in the eastern part of the Smithsonian building has 
been utilized for the prints, books, and various other works of art, but the 
larger part of the collection has been provided for in the National Museum. 
Such, briefly, was the history of the art exhibits up to January, 1906, when the 
acceptance by the Board of Regents of the large and notable collection of Mr. 
Charles L. Freer marked the beginning of a new epoch in the affairs of the 
gallery of art. In the following July a further advance was made through the 
‘acquisition of the valuable collection of the late Harriet Lane Johnston, based 
upon a decision of the supreme court of the District of Columbia, essentially 
reaffirming the intent of the fundamental act, already referred to, that the 
custodianship of the national gallery of art was vested in the Smithsonian 
Institution. This collection is especially noteworthy in that it contains paint- 
ings by several celebrated masters, besides other pieces of merit and of his- 
torical importance. It was delivered to the Institution in the early part of 
August, 1906, and was at once installed in the reception room in the Smith- 
sonian building, the only place then available. 
The necessity of securing more extensive quarters without delay led to the 
selection and temporary fitting up of the lecture hall in the Museum building 
for the purposes of the gallery and especially for the paintings. On the com- 
pletion of these changes in the latter part of November, 1906, the Harriet Lane 
Johnston collection and other paintings were transferred there, and these, with 
several loans and donations, fully occupied the existing wall space. Among the 
loans should be mentioned 21 paintings from the Lucius Tuckerman collection, 
and among the gifts, one by the Hon. J. B. Henderson, of Washington, and 
one by Miss Eleanor Blodgett, of New York. 
During the latter part of the winter the gallery received a most substantial 
and gratifying recognition from Mr. William T. Evans, of Montclair, N. J., 
the well-known connoisseur and patron of art, whose contribution, made with- 
out solicitation, consisted of 52 paintings in oil by American artists of estab- 
lished reputation. Unfortunately no place could be found in the Museum build- 
ing for this valuable collection, and it was necessary to provide elsewhere 
for its temporary keeping. This has been accomplished through the courtesy 
of the trustees of the Corcoran Gallery of Art, where the pictures are now hung, 
filling the greater part of the large atrium. 
Leaving out of consideration the Freer collection, which is to remain at the 
home of its generous donor during his lifetime, the national gallery now has 
in its possession valuable paintings and other art objects for whose exhibition 
under suitable conditions it is important to arrange without delay. For this 
purpose there is no better place in the existing buildings than the second story 
of the main part of the Smithsonian building, a hall 200 feet long by 50 feet 
wide. It will require some changes to adapt it to the hanging and lighting 
of pictures, and some improvement in its approaches which are now incon- 
venient for the public, involving an expenditure greater than is possible from 
the current appropriation, but it is hoped that Congress may provide for this 
work at its forthcoming session. 
