George & Sarah Drayton

This pair of well-drawn and characterful pencil portraits showing George Drayton and his wife Sarah was likely taken in 1773 to mark their marriage. George looks exceedingly dapper in his striped waistcoat, frilled chemise and well-cut coat with its large buttons and deep collar. Sarah’s attire appears more sober though she has a ribbon choker and a generously trimmed dormeuse cap that rises at the back to cover her fashionably high hair-style.

George Drayton was born in Atherstone, Warwickshire in June 1739. He was 34 when he married 30-year-old Sarah Box with whom he had eight children. George was a mercer and draper; having been employed in Gloucester by a Mr Everard, he took over the shop in June 1773 – just a month before his marriage. Stocking linen, woollen and haberdashery, he also advertised silky stuffs, silk handkerchiefs, Irish of all breadths, printed cottons, figured dimities and finally shrouds! Two years later George unexpectedly announced that he was ‘entirely quitting the trade’ and so selling off his stock. But four months later his ‘removal from Gloucester [was] postponed’ though the discounts were to continue.

Perhaps it had all just been a clever marketing ploy as Draper Drayton continued to trade from the same address for another decade. But something was amiss as, in June 1788, George took out an advert to accuse the Company of Mercers of forcing him (and others) out of business. This time he really did seem to be quitting the trade as he was now also selling off the shop fixtures.

It would appear though that the stress of the business took its toll as seven months later, in January 1789, George Drayton died, aged fifty. Having been married for just 16 years, Sarah then became a widow for 38 years, being in her 84th year when she died in 1827.

Finely drawn in pencil on card, the portraits reside in attractive water gilded frames and are in good condition. There is no evidence of an artist signature though the frames have not been opened.