The Williamsport community will celebrate a former local artist with the installation of a historical marker this summer by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.
Frances Tipton Hunter (1896- 1957) was an illustrator who created magazine covers for The Saturday Evening Post, Good Housekeeping, and Ladies’ Home Journal, and illustrated and published two children’s books. Her artwork is similar in style to Norman Rockwell and often featured children and pets.
Hunter lived in Williamsport during her young life until she moved to Philadelphia to study art at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. She began her career illustrating fashion for department store children’s clothing lines.
Two of Hunter’s works are featured in the Fine Arts Gallery of the Taber Museum, with more drawn from the permanent collections of the Taber for a special display of her work on the day of the installation. The James V. Brown Library has more than 10 large framed illustrations on display on the third floor of the Welch Children’s Wing.
A historical marker honoring Hunter’s accomplishments will be unveiled during a ceremony on Sunday, June 9, at the Ways Garden Art Show, located at the corner of West Fourth and Maynard Streets.
The Ways Garden Art Show, coordinated by the Bald Eagle Art League (B.E.A.L.), begins at 11 a.m. and will be followed by a brief presentation at noon from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, Lycoming County Historical Society, James V. Brown Library, B.E.A.L. and Ways Garden, and will be followed by a performance at 12:30 p.m. by the Repasz Band.