Admiral King Painting Update

Remember my quest to find out about that painted portrait of Admiral Ernest J. King (shown above)?

It was waaaay back in 2011 that I had been alerted that the painting had been in storage at the Charleston Administration Center (the former Charleston Elementary School), and that it was headed over to the new Admiral Ernest J. King Elementary School to be displayed there.

Here it is, hanging on the wall at the dedication of the new elementary school in 2011.

But who painted it – and what was the story behind it?

That was all answered back here on this post (with additional information on this one), where it was revealed that it was painted by Chris Lewis, chief deputy in the Lorain County Sheriff's Dept.  It was given to the Admiral at the September 1945 Victory Luncheon at the Hotel Antlers.

Courtesy Lorain Historical Society

But sixty-six years later, it was being stored in a cluttered room at the Charleston Administration Center.

If it was given to Admiral King, how did it end up back in Lorain?

Well, I recently found another piece of the puzzle, thanks to the Lorain Public Library's online archives of the Lorain Journal (accessible free through the library's website).

It was back on July 2, 1948 that a small item in "The Log of Lorain" column noted, "The portrait of Admiral Ernest J. King, painted by Chris Lewis and presented to the admiral when he was here for the city's victory celebration three years ago, today hung in the library at Lorain High School.

"The portrait was presented to the school as a gift from the Admiral, according to Principal K. C. Shook."

So that's the picture. The Admiral felt that his Alma Mater should have it, and that's how it ended up back in Lorain.

Did Lorain High School give it to the new Admiral King High School when it opened in 1961? I haven't found any confirmation of that, but perhaps time will tell.