A Life Etched in History: The World of John Gadsby Chapman John Gadsby Chapman, a name perhaps unfamiliar to many today, represents a fascinating intersection of American history painting, European artistic training, and the burgeoning print culture of the 19th century. Born December 3, 1808, in Alexandria, Virginia, into a family steeped in local prominence—his grandfather was the renowned tavern keeper John Gadsby—Chapman embarked o…