 1771 - 1851 (80 years)
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| Name |
Abigail Lopez [2, 3, 4] |
| Born |
1771 [3, 5] |
| Gender |
Female |
| Reference Number |
2020 |
| Buried |
Aug 1851 |
Cypress Hills Cemetery, Brooklyn, NY  [6] |
| Died |
2 Aug 1851 |
New York [3, 5] |
| Person ID |
I2020 |
aojd |
| Last Modified |
14 Nov 2011 |
-
| Notes |
- (Research):Miniature Portrait of Abigail Lopez Gomez
American, circa 1790
Watercolor on ivory, gold case
Height 2 inches
Courtesy of Elle Shushan/Augustus Decorative Arts, Limited
When Abigail Lopez was born in 1771, her father, Aaron Lopez, was undoubtedly the richest man in Newport, Rhode Island. Known as the "Merchant Prince," Lopez owned thirty ships with cargo including molasses, rum, and slaves. He was a pillar of the large and powerful Jewish community of Newport and a founder of the Redwood Library and Touro Synagogue (his son would marry Isaac Touro's daughter). For his daughter Abigail, Aaron Lopez would look further, choosing Isaac Gomez, a member of the largest and most influential Jewish family in New York. They married on May 26, 1790, joining two immensely wealthy and important Sephardic families.
By the time Hannah London published Miniatures and Silhouettes of Early American Jews in the 1950s, Abigail was all but forgotten. Her miniature, probably a wedding portrait, had descended to Florence Dreyfous of New York, who knew her only as "Miss Gomez," an ancestor. That was the only caption for the sweet face published in London's book.
Eventually, the miniature moved on to another distant relation in England. Having no real attachment to the miniature, which they called "Miss Lopez," she was consigned in 1999 to Christie's, South Kensington, in London, where she was pictured in the catalogue on a page among many other miniatures.
With the help of the New England Historic Genealogical Society's Editorial Director D. Brenton Simons and working backwards from Florence Dreyfous, Abigail Lopez Gomez finally has her full name and identity back for the first time in almost a century.
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AJLLJ Portraits Database 5 Aug 2011
The daughter of shipping magnate Aaron Lopez, Abigail grew up in Newport where her father was known as the "merchant prince." In 1790 she married Isaac Gomez, Jr., member of one of New York's largest, wealthiest, and most influential Jewish families. Like Abigail he was part of early America's Sephardic elite, and their marriage formed a bond between two of the most prominent families of the day.
Abigail's husband, named after an older brother who died in infancy, proved generally a failure in business. His interests lay outside of the familiar mercantilism of his milieu, in the world of literature. In 1820 he published an anthology of poetry and prose, perhaps the first literary work compiled by an American Jew. Entitled Selections of a Father for the Use of his Children, it was well regarded and rather popular, and John Adams was enough impressed by the publication to write to Gomez to tell him, "it shall be a manual on my table."
As the title of the work suggests, Gomez dedicated himself to his seven children; he was also an adoring husband. In 1829, after thirty-eight years of marriage, Isaac gave Abigail as a gift a prayer book copied out in his own hand, leather bound, with marbled edges and containing the following note: "I thank God for having created thee for me, and me for thee…and I trust that you are well convinced that did I possess the riches of Peru my greatest happiness would be to lay them at your feet."
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Antiques and Fine Art Magazine Website
Miniature Portrait of Abigail Lopez Gomez
American, circa 1790
Watercolor on ivory, gold case
Height 2 inches
Courtesy of Elle Shushan/Augustus Decorative Arts, Limited
When Abigail Lopez was born in 1771, her father, Aaron Lopez, was undoubtedly the richest man in Newport, Rhode Island. Known as the "Merchant Prince," Lopez owned thirty ships with cargo including molasses, rum, and slaves. He was a pillar of the large and powerful Jewish community of Newport and a founder of the Redwood Library and Touro Synagogue (his son would marry Isaac Touro's daughter). For his daughter Abigail, Aaron Lopez would look further, choosing Isaac Gomez, a member of the largest and most influential Jewish family in New York. They married on May 26, 1790, joining two immensely wealthy and important Sephardic families.
By the time Hannah London published Miniatures and Silhouettes of Early American Jews in the 1950s, Abigail was all but forgotten. Her miniature, probably a wedding portrait, had descended to Florence Dreyfous of New York, who knew her only as "Miss Gomez," an ancestor. That was the only caption for the sweet face published in London's book.
Eventually, the miniature moved on to another distant relation in England. Having no real attachment to the miniature, which they called "Miss Lopez," she was consigned in 1999 to Christie's, South Kensington, in London, where she was pictured in the catalogue on a page among many other miniatures.
With the help of the New England Historic Genealogical Society's Editorial Director D. Brenton Simons and working backwards from Florence Dreyfous, Abigail Lopez Gomez finally has her full name and identity back for the first time in almost a century. [7, 8, 9]
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| Sources |
- [S285] .
- [S4] PG. 85 GOMEZ I, 175 LOPEZ I (1) (RIVIERA, NEWPORT RI) (Reliability: 3).
- [S76] FAMILY GROUP SHEET #20 (Reliability: 3).
- [S74] "THE GENEALOGY OF THE LOPEZ FAMILY," PRESENTED [CA. 1825] BY SARAH LOPEZ OF [OF NEW YORK] TO HER FRIEND, MRS. PRISCILLA LOPEZ, OF CHARLESTON, BY HER REQUEST. [APPNDIX I]. PG 197-201 (Reliability: 3).
- [S4] PG. 175 LOPEZ I (1) (RIVIERA, NEWPORT RI) (Reliability: 3).
- [S32] GOMEZ, ABIGAIL [LOPEZ] PG. 141 (Reliability: 3).
- [S401] MINIATURE PORTRAIT OF ABIGAIL LOPEZ GOMEZ: HTTP://WWW.ANTIQUESANDFINEART.COM/ARTICLES/ARTICLE.CFM?REQUEST=58 (Reliability: 3).
- [S294] GOMEZ, ABIGAIL LOPEZ (Reliability: 3).
- [S401] MINIATURE PORTRAIT OF ABIGAIL LOPEZ GOMEZ WWW.ANTIQUESANDFINEART.COM/ARTICLES/ARTICLE.CFM?REQUEST=58 (Reliability: 3).
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