John Neal by Sarah Miriam Peale, c. 1823, oil on canvas - Portland Museum of Art - Portland, Maine - DSC04059

Sarah Miriam Peale (1800–1885) is America’s first truly professional female artist. She had a career of nearly sixty years during which she lived on her own and supported herself with her art. Considered the leading portrait painter in Baltimore and St. Louis during the 19th century, she successfully competed with male painters of that time.