"Maryland's Version of 'The First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation by President Lincoln' " painted by Laura Era.
Artist Laura Era paints the Unrecognized Member
of Abraham Lincoln’s Cabinet,
Anna Ella Carroll
You can’t keep a good woman down. Just ask well-known portrait artist and gallery owner, Laura Era, who has dedicated many hours to bringing to life the all-but-forgotten image of Anna Ella Carroll. More than a century following Carroll’s death, after being ignored, oppressed, and—literally—erased from history, Era has artfully restored Anna Ella Carroll to her rightful place in history.
Anna Ella Carroll was an intriguing and atypical 19th century woman who emerged from the male-dominated realm of war, politics, and diplomacy. As a key military strategist, Presidential advisor, and “unrecognized” member of Abraham Lincoln’s Cabinet, Carroll was probably the most powerful woman in America during the Civil War. Yet, her accomplishments are virtually unknown. When Carroll died in 1894, deprived of honor, title, pension, and acknowledgement, her life story was already considered a model for the Women’s Suffrage Movement. A modern biographer described Carroll as “hands down the most important political woman of the 19th century.”
Laura Era was commissioned by a local group that wanted to bring Anna’s story back to the forefront with a popular image.
Anna Ella Carroll was an intriguing and atypical 19th century woman who emerged from the male-dominated realm of war, politics, and diplomacy. As a key military strategist, Presidential advisor, and “unrecognized” member of Abraham Lincoln’s Cabinet, Carroll was probably the most powerful woman in America during the Civil War. Yet, her accomplishments are virtually unknown. When Carroll died in 1894, deprived of honor, title, pension, and acknowledgement, her life story was already considered a model for the Women’s Suffrage Movement. A modern biographer described Carroll as “hands down the most important political woman of the 19th century.”includes the addition of Anna Ella Carroll sitting in the previously empty chair and wearing the red shawl.
Carroll was born at Kingston Hall in Somerset County, and later lived in Dorchester County, Maryland also home to Laura Era, who has come to view Anna as a kindred spirit.
Original painting by F.B. Carpenter, 1864. Hangs in the Senate wing in the US Capital.