An ink drawing of minister and abolitionist John Woolman appeared as the frontispiece of the 1970 Gehenna Press edition of John Woolman’s Some Considerations on the Keeping of Negroes. It depicts a gaunt, intense figure. Painter and sculptor Leonard Baskin created it. In addition, he illustrated the cover of John Woolman’s Dream of the Fox and the Cat.
The portrait of Woolman, attributed to Robert Smith III, was Baskin’s inspiration. The Smith picture, however, most likely does not show Woolman. Instead, his sketch may have portrayed Friend Anthony Benezet.
The John Woolman drawing is haunting. Though it is probably not based on what Woolman looked like, it does capture his ethereal spirit.
Gary Sandman
July 2025