Daniel Chester French was one of the most successful artists of the late 19th and the early 20th centuries, producing more than 100 public sculptures. He is best known for his Minute Man in Concord, Massachusetts and the Abraham Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Naumkeag is the former Berkshire estate of New York City lawyer and U.S. Ambassador to Great Britain, Joseph Hodges Choate, and his wife Caroline, located in Stockbridge, Massachusettes. The Choate’s, who were part of the newly-rich, traveled in well-to-do social circles. They decided to build a 44-room shingle-style “cottage” with brick and stone details, designed by the architect of the day, Stanford White.