Portrait, Sid McMath

 
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Portrait, Sid McMath
Portrait, Sid McMath
Portrait, Sid McMath
Portrait, Sid McMath

Portrait, Sid McMath

Object number2016.050.07
Date1998
OriginArkansas
MediumOil on Linen
DimensionsFrame: 47 1/2 × 43 1/4 × 3 1/4 in. (120.7 × 109.9 × 8.3 cm) Canvas: 39 1/4 × 35 1/4 in. (99.7 × 89.5 cm)
Credit LineOld State House Museum Collection
Terms
    DescriptionA portrait of Sid McMath painted by prominent Arkansan portrait artist Betty Dortch. Sid is depicted as an elder sitting in a high back chair with his right leg crossed over his left with his right hand on his right leg. His left hand is resting on the armrest. He is wearing a black suit with a white button down shirt and a striped red and black tie. He is smiling as well. A mirror and buffet are in the background.

    Sidney “Sid” Sanders McMath was born June 14, 1912 in Columbia County, Arkansas. McMath won the election for prosecuting attorney for the Eighth Judicial District in 1947, and soon after being sworn in, McMath formally charged Hot Springs Mayor Leo McLaughlin with accessory to election fraud. The next year, 1948, McMath was elected governor. During his four years as governor he was able to add more than 2,000 miles to the state highway system, extended power to all regions of the state, secure funds for the School of Medicine at the University of Arkansas (now the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences), and help to consolidate and integrate schools. The governor’s mansion was completed 1949, and the McMath family became its first residents. McMath married prominent Arkansan portrait artist Betty Dortch Russell on September 14, 1996. He died on October 4, 2003 in Little Rock.
    Status
    Not on view