Eric,

This won't help you find the current location of the portrait, but have you looked at Ford's papers at UVA? "A Guide to the Papers of James Westhall Ford, 1804-1874," (Accession Number 6073) states that the collection includes, among many other items, correspondence with a Josiah Mills/Wills:

	Personal correspondence between the Fords and the family of Josiah Mills (Wills?) of Norfolk is contained in a 	separate folder. Extending from 1839 to 1848, it deals largely with family matters of both a personal and financial 	nature. A number of letters deal with problems associated with Sister Sarah Alvey; others relate to Mills's efforts 	to sell a slave by the name of Delphia. In a letter dated January 13, 1840, Mr. Mills writes that he has "sent to 	you my negro Woman Delphia to be sold to the highest bidder or for the best price you can obtain." A subsequent 	letter (July 28, 1840) reveals that Delphia does not like to live in Norfolk and has been sent "again to Richmond 	to be disposed of."

Hope this helps.

Cathy Hellier, Historian
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
 

-----Original Message-----
From: Discussion of research and writing about Virginia history [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Huffstutler, Eric S.
Sent: Thursday, January 27, 2011 1:03 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: artist - James W. Ford and Wills portraits?

I read a note for the Southern quarterly magazine, Volume 17 of 1978
which states that famed artist James Westhall Ford while in Richmond
during the 1830s, painted portraits of Charles Wills and Josiah Wills.
I am assuming these are the two sons of the elder Charles Wills
(c.1775-1820) who we seek info on as well.

How would I track down these portraits?

Thanks!
Eric 
 
* * *
 
This E-mail, along with any attachments, is considered confidential and may well be legally privileged. If you have received it in error, you are on notice of its status. Please notify us immediately by reply e-mail and then delete this message from your system. Please do not copy it or use it for any purposes, or disclose its contents to any other person. Thank you for your cooperation.
* * *
To ensure compliance with Treasury Department regulations, we inform you that, unless otherwise indicated in writing, any U.S. Federal tax advice contained in this communication  (including any attachments) is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (1) avoiding penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or applicable state and local provisions or (2) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any tax-related matters addressed herein.
Disclaimer Version RS.US.1.01.03
pdc1

______________________________________
To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at
http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html

______________________________________
To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at
http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html