Skip to main content

Secondary sourcePhotographafter 1933

Vernon House Painted Panel Room

Jack Boucher · after 1933

A 1969 survey photograph of a painted panel room in Vernon House, Newport, used by Rochambeau as his headquarters.

This survey photo documents Vernon House, where Rochambeau was headquartered in 1781.

Ask Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau about this sourceView the original(opens in new tab)
Black-and-white photograph of an interior corner room with white paneled walls and doors. The north wall has dark painted panels decorated with birds, peacocks, a pagoda-like structure, and foliage, set in a light frame with a central white cabinet. A white bench sits at left and a patterned rug lies on a dark wood floor. A HABS label is printed on the right edge.
Jack Boucher, Vernon House painted panel room, Historic American Buildings Survey, documentation compiled after 1933.

About this source

What it is

This photograph, taken by Jack Boucher as part of the Historic American Buildings Survey, shows a northwest room in Vernon House with painted decorative panels. The documentation was compiled after 1933.

Why it matters

Vernon House served as Rochambeau's headquarters in 1781 during the American Revolutionary War, and the building is also connected to George Washington and other historical figures. This image documents the decorative interior of a house tied to important military history, though it shows the building itself rather than the people who used it.

Look closer

  • What do the painted decorations on the panels suggest about the taste and wealth of the house's owners?
  • Why would historians photograph architectural details like these rather than just the outside of the building?
  • What can and can't a photograph of a room tell us about the events that happened inside it?

This photograph is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

More Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau sources

Meet the AI Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau →
Document

Primary source

Articles of Capitulation, Yorktown

Charles Cornwallis; George Washington; Comte de Rochambeau; Comte de Barras · 19 October 1781

Scan of a handwritten two-column manuscript on aged, browned paper. The left column is in English under the heading 'Treaty of Alliance', and the right column is in French under 'Traité d'alliance eventuelle et défensive'. The text opens by naming the Most Christian King and the United States of North America.Document

Primary source

Treaty of Alliance with France

6 February 1778

Photograph of the back cover of a book bound in red leather at the spine and corners, with dark blue, black, and tan marbled paper covering the boards. The marbled pattern shows swirling circular shapes.Book

Primary source

Mémoires militaires, historiques et politiques de Rochambeau

comte de Rochambeau · 1809

Oval oil portrait of an older man with powdered gray hair, looking toward the viewer, wearing a dark cloak with gold braided trim, a white cravat, pink garment beneath, and a large embroidered star-shaped order insignia on his chest, set in a gold frame against a dark background.Painting

Primary source

Portrait of Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau

Charles Willson Peale · 1782

Large painting of a battlefield scene with a grey, stormy sky. On the left, British redcoat troops stand in lines beside a white flag. On the right, American troops in blue and buff stand beside a striped flag. In the center, a mounted commander on a white horse, with a figure in red uniform walking in front, faces the lines.Painting

Secondary source

Surrender of Lord Cornwallis

John Trumbull · 1819

Ready when you are

Start chatting with Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau now.

20 messages free · No credit card · Available in 50+ languages.

Trial Humy for freeGet a quote for institutions