View source for Francis Davis Millet: November 3,1846-April 15, 1912

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Davis_Millet From the Millet Article in Wikipedia.] Note: The Wikipedia biography needs to be rewritten for OutHistory to focus on Millet's sexual and intimate life, and how that might or might not have effected his art and writing. -- Jonathan Ned Katz, Director, OutHistory.org 


Francis Davis Millet (November 3, 1846 - April 15, 1912) was an American painter, sculptor, and writer who died in the sinking of the RMS Titanic on April 15, 1912.  His life included two relationships with men that appear to have involved active sexual expression, one with journalist Charles Warren Stoddard, the other with a Greek youth with whom, he wrote to Stoddard, "I am spooning frightfully".<ref>Katz, Love Stories, page 217.</ref> Millet eventually married and produced three children.

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==Early life==
Francis Davis Millet was born in Mattapoisett, Massachusetts.


At age sixteen, during the American Civil War, Millet entered the Massachusetts regiment, first as a drummer boy and then as a surgical assistant (helping his father, a surgeon).  He repeatedly pointed to his experience working for his father as giving him an appreciation for the vivid blood red that he repeatedly used in his early paintings.


==Career==
He entered the [[Royal Academy of Fine Arts (Antwerp)|Royal Academy of Fine Arts]] at [[Antwerp]], [[Belgium]], and won a silver medal in his first year (never before done), followed by a gold medal in his second.


Millet rented a studio in Rome in the early 1870s, and in Venice in the mid-1870s, where he lived with Charles Warren Stoddard, a well-known American travel journalist who, evidence indicates, had an active sexual interest in men. Historian Jonathan Ned Katz presents letters from Millet to Stoddard that suggest they had a romantic and intimate affair while living a bohemian life together.<ref>Katz, Jonathan Ned. ''Love Stories: Sex Between Men Before Homosexuality'' (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2001).</ref>
  

In 1876, Millet returned to Boston to paint murals at Trinity Church in Boston with [[John LaFarge]].  


In the [[Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78]], he was engaged as a war correspondent by the New York ''Herald'', the London ''Daily News'', and the London ''Graphic''.  He was decorated by Russia and Romania due to his bravery under fire and services to the wounded.  


During his lifetime, Millet became a well-regarded American Academic Classicist painter.  


Millet was close friends with [[Augustus Saint-Gaudens]] and [[Mark Twain]], both of whom were present at his 1879 marriage to Elizabeth Merrill in Paris, France; Twain was his best man, along with P. T. Barnum.<CHECK>  He was also well acquainted with the impressionist artist [[John Singer Sargent]], who often used Millet's daughter Kate as a model, as well as the esteemed [[Huxley]] family.
  

Millet became a member of the Society of American Artists in 1880, and in 1885 was elected as a member of the National Academy of Design, New York and as Vice-Chairman of the Fine Arts Committee. He was made a trustee of the [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]], and sat on the advisory committee of the [[National Gallery of Art]]. 


He was decorations director for the [[World's Columbian Exposition]] in [[Chicago]] in 1893, where he is credited with having invented the first form of spray paint. His career included work with a number of worlds' fairs, including Vienna, Chicago, Paris, and Tokyo, where he made contributions as a juror, administrator, mural painter/decorator, or adviser.<ref name="gaines">Gaines, Catherine S. ''A Finding Aid to the Francis Davis Millet and Millet Family Papers, 1858-1984 (bulk 1858-1955) in the Archives of American Art.''  [http://www.aaa.si.edu/collectionsonline/millfran/index.cfm The Francis Davis Millet And Millet Family Papers Online], Smithsonian Archives of American Art.</ref>


Millet was among the founders of the [[School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston]], and was influential in the early days of the [http://www.afaweb.org/ American Federation of Arts]. He was instrumental in obtaining the appointment of [[Emil Otto Grundmann]], an old acquaintance from his Antwerp days, as first head of the School.<ref>[http://jssgallery.org/Other_Artists/Millet_Francis_D/Francis_D_Millet.htm John Singer Sargent Virtual Gallery]</ref> Millet was involved with the [http://www.aarome.org/ American Academy in Rome] from its inception and served as Secretary from 1904-1911.


He was elected a member of the [[American Academy of Arts and Letters]] and was also an honorary member of the [[American Institute of Architects]].


He died aboard the Titanic while traveling to New York City on Academy business.<ref name="gaines"/>


[[File:Francis Davis Millet, ca1900.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Millet at work in his studio, circa 1900]]


Millet was a translater, book writer and journalist as well as a visual artist.  He translated [[Leo Tolstoy|Tolstoy]] and also wrote essays and short stories. Among his books are ''Capillary Crime and Other Stories'' (1892) and ''Expedition to the Philippines'' (1899). 


A noted sculptor and designer as well, Millet designed the 1907 [[Civil War Medal]] at the request of the [[U.S. Army]] and [[United States War Department]].  He also executed the ceiling of the Call Room of the [[U.S. Custom House (Baltimore, Maryland)|U.S. Custom House]] at [[Baltimore, Maryland]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mht.maryland.gov/nr/NRDetail.aspx?HDID=212&COUNTY=Baltimore%20City&FROM=NRCountyList.aspx?COUNTY=Baltimore%20City|title=Maryland Historical Trust|date=2008-11-21|work=U.S. Custom House, Baltimore City|publisher=Maryland Historical Trust}}</ref>


[[File:Bookplate of Francis Davis Millet.jpg|thumb|right|Bookplate of Francis Davis Millet]]


==Death==
On April 10, 1912, Millet boarded the RMS ''Titanic'' at [[Cherbourg]], France, bound for New York City. He was last seen helping women and children into lifeboats. His body was recovered by the cable boat [[Mackay-Bennett]] and returned to [[East Bridgewater, Massachusetts]], where he was buried in Central Cemetery.


In 1913 a fountain was erected in [[Washington, D.C.]], in memory of Millet and his friend [[Archibald Butt|Archibald W. Butt]]. A bronze bust in Harvard University's [[Widener Library]] also memorializes Millet.


=Notes=
<references/>


{{Persondata
|NAME= Millet, Francis Davis
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
|SHORT DESCRIPTION= American painter, sculptor, and writer who died in the sinking of the [[RMS Titanic]]
|DATE OF BIRTH= November 3, 1846
|PLACE OF BIRTH= [[Mattapoisett, Massachusetts]]
|DATE OF DEATH= April 15, 1912
|PLACE OF DEATH= aboard [[RMS Titanic]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Millet, Francis Davis}}
[[Category:1846 births]]
[[Category:1912 deaths]]
[[Category:Harvard University alumni]]
[[Category:American muralists]]
[[Category:American painters]]
[[Category:American Civil War surgeons]]
[[Category:Deaths on the RMS Titanic]]
[[Category:People from Plymouth County, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:RMS Titanic's crew and passengers]]
[[Category:American war correspondents]]
[[Category:People lost at sea]]
[[Category:Alumni of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts (Antwerp)]]
[[Category:Archives of American Art related]]

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[[cs:Francis Davis Millet]]
[[de:Francis Davis Millet]]
[[fr:Francis Davis Millet]]
[[pl:Francis Davis Millet]]
[[ru:Миллет, Фрэнсис Дэвис]]




==Bibliography==  
* Beckwith, Baxter, Maynard, [[Edwin Howland Blashfield|Blashfield]], and Coffin,  ''Art and Progress'', volume iii (Washington, 1912)
* Katz, Jonathan Ned. Love Stories: Sex Between Men Before Homosexuality. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2001. Chapter 14, "Empty Chair, Empty Bed, Empty House," pages 202-219.  
* Sharpey-Schafer, Joyce Anne: "Soldier of Fortune: F.D. Millet" (printed privately; out of print)



==See also==
{{Portal|Biography}}

* [[Francis Davis Millet - A Titanic Life by Peter A. Engstrom]]
* [[Passengers of the RMS Titanic]]
* [[RMS Titanic|RMS ''Titanic'']]
* ''[[The Devil in the White City]]''
* [[World's Columbian Exposition]]


==External links==
* [http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/millet_francis_davis.html Francis Davis Millet] at [[Artcyclopedia]]
* {{gutenberg author|id=Francis_Davis_Millet|name=Francis Davis Millet}}
* [http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/207/ Francis Davis Millet] at [[Encyclopedia Titanica]]
* [http://www.aaa.si.edu/collectionsonline/millfran/ Francis Davis Millet And Millet Family Papers Online at the Smithsonian Archives of American Art]
* {{Find A Grave|id=3817}}



* {{cite book |title=The American Federation of Arts: Francis Davis Millet Memorial Meeting  |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=hUIbAAAAYAAJ |last=Brown (Editor) |first=Glenn |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=1912 |publisher=Gibson Bros. |location=Washington |isbn= |page= |pages=62 |accessdate=2009-07-13}}

* {{cite journal |last=Mechlin |first=Leila |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=1909 |month=December |title=A Decorator of Public Buildings: The Work of Francis D. Millet |journal=[[World's Work|The World's Work: A History of Our Time]] |volume=XIX |issue= |pages=12378–12386  |url= http://books.google.com/books?id=bHIAAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA12378|accessdate=2009-07-10 |quote= }}


==External links==
{{Commons category|Francis Davis Millet}}

* [http://www.atitaniclife.com Francis Davis Millet - A Titanic Life by Peter A. Engstrom - The only full 465 page biography]

* [http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/millet_francis_davis.html Francis Davis Millet] at [[Artcyclopedia]]

*{{gutenberg author|id=Francis_Davis_Millet|name=Francis Davis Millet}}

* [http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/207/ Francis Davis Millet] at [[Encyclopedia Titanica]]

* [http://www.aaa.si.edu/collectionsonline/millfran/ Francis Davis Millet And Millet Family Papers Online at the Smithsonian Archives of American Art]

*{{Find a Grave|3817|accessdate=2009-04-14}}

=See: [[Francis Davis Millet Timeline: November 3, 1846 - present]]=


{{DEFAULTSORT:Millet, Francis Davis}}
[[Category:American painters]]
[[Category:American Civil War surgeons]]
[[Category:Bisexual]]
[[Category:Deaths on the Titanic]]
[[Category:People from Plymouth County, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Titanic's crew and passengers]]
[[Category:War correspondents]]
[[Category:1846 births]]
[[Category:1912 deaths]]