Rockwell Family History & Genealogy

Florence Rockwell of Bloomsburg, Columbia County, PA was born on September 29, 1894, and died at age 89 years old in June 1984.

Kittie Rockwell of Nampa, Canyon County, Idaho United States was born in February 1885 in CO to Innocent Lavoina (Webb) Rockwell and Fred Anson Rockwell. She had a sister Lena Lavonia Rockwell. Kittie Rockwell died at age 15 years old in 1900 in Nampa, ID.

NORMAN ROCKWELL: A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) Without thinking too much about it in specific terms, I was showing the America I knew and observed to others who might not have noticed. —Norman Rockwell Born in New York City in 1894, Norman Rockwell always wanted to be an artist. At age 14, Rockwell enrolled in art classes at The New York School of Art (formerly The Chase School of Art). Two years later, in 1910, he left high school to study art at The National Academy of Design. He soon transferred to The Art Students League, where he studied with Thomas Fogarty and George Bridgman. Fogarty’s instruction in illustration prepared Rockwell for his first commercial commissions. From Bridgman, Rockwell learned the technical skills on which he relied throughout his long career. Rockwell found success early. He painted his first commission of four Christmas cards before his sixteenth birthday. While still in his teens, he was hired as art director of Boys’ Life, the official publication of the Boy Scouts of America, and began a successful freelance career illustrating a variety of young people’s publications. At age 21, Rockwell’s family moved to New Rochelle, New York, a community whose residents included such famous illustrators as J.C. and Frank Leyendecker and Howard Chandler Christy. There, Rockwell set up a studio with the cartoonist Clyde Forsythe and produced work for such magazines as Life, Literary Digest, and Country Gentleman. In 1916, the 22-year-old Rockwell painted his first cover for The Saturday Evening Post, the magazine considered by Rockwell to be the “greatest show window in America.” Over the next 47 years, another 321 Rockwell covers would appear on the cover of the Post. Also in 1916, Rockwell married Irene O’Connor; they divorced in 1930. The 1930s and 1940s are generally considered to be the most fruitful decades of Rockwell’s career. In 1930 he married Mary Barstow, a schoolteacher, and the couple had three sons, Jarvis, Thomas, and Peter. The family moved to Arlington, Vermont, in 1939, and Rockwell’s work began to reflect small-town American life. In 1943, inspired by President Franklin Roosevelt’s address to Congress, Rockwell painted the Four Freedoms paintings. They were reproduced in four consecutive issues of The Saturday Evening Post with essays by contemporary writers. Rockwell’s interpretations of Freedom of Speech, Freedom to Worship, Freedom from Want, and Freedom from Fear proved to be enormously popular. The works toured the United States in an exhibition that was jointly sponsored by the Post and the U.S. Treasury Department and, through the sale of war bonds, raised more than $130 million for the war effort. Norman Rockwell (1894-1978), "Freedom of Speech," 1943 "Freedom of Worship," 1943, Norman Rockwell (1894-1978). Oil on canvas, 46” x 35 ½”. Story illustration for "The Saturday Evening Post," February 27, 1943. Norman Rockwell Museum Collections. ©1943 SEPS: Curtis Publishing, Indianapolis, IN Freedom of Worship "Freedom from Want," Norman Rockwell, 1943. Norman Rockwell Museum Collections. ©1943 SEPS: Curtis Publishing, Indianapolis, IN Freedom from Want Norman Rockwell (1894-1978), "Freedom From Fear," 1943 Freedom from Fear Although the Four Freedoms series was a great success, 1943 also brought Rockwell an enormous loss. A fire destroyed his Arlington studio as well as numerous paintings and his collection of historical costumes and props. In 1953, the Rockwell family moved from Arlington, Vermont, to Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Six years later, Mary Barstow Rockwell died unexpectedly. In collaboration with his son Thomas, Rockwell published his autobiography, My Adventures as an Illustrator, in 1960. The Saturday Evening Post carried excerpts from the best-selling book in eight consecutive issues, with Rockwell’s Triple Self-Portrait on the cover of the first. In 1961, Rockwell married Molly Punderson, a retired teacher. Two years later, he ended his 47-year association with The Saturday Evening Post and began to work for Look magazine. During his 10-year association with Look, Rockwell painted pictures illustrating some of his deepest concerns and interests, including civil rights, America’s war on poverty, and the exploration of space. In 1973, Rockwell established a trust to preserve his artistic legacy by placing his works in the custodianship of the Old Corner House Stockbridge Historical Society, later to become Norman Rockwell Museum at Stockbridge. The trust now forms the core of the Museum’s permanent collections. In 1976, in failing health, Rockwell became concerned about the future of his studio. He arranged to have his studio and its contents added to the trust. In 1977, Rockwell received the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In 2008, Rockwell was named the official state artist of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, thanks to a dedicated effort from students in Berkshire County, where Rockwell lived for the last 25 years of his life. Old Corner House (Norman Rockwell Museum), Stockbridge, MA

Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Bernie Rockwell .

Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Charles Rockwell .

Charles Rockwell was born on October 7, 1947, and died at age 37 years old in April 1985. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Charles Rockwell.

Fred Anson Rockwell of Waterloo, California United States was born on February 4, 1859 in Arena, Iowa County, WI. He was married to Innocent Lavoina (Webb) Rockwell on October 11, 1883, and had children Kittie Rockwell and Lena Lavonia Rockwell. Fred Rockwell died at age 90 years old on July 17, 1949 in Stockton, San Joaquin County, CA, and was buried on July 19, 1949 at Stockton Rural Cemetery 2350 Cemetery Ln, in Stockton.

Lena Lavonia Rockwell of Waterloo, California United States was born on April 8, 1887, and died at age 81 years old on May 3, 1968 in Waterloo.

Innocent Lavoina (“Livena”) Webb, daughter of William and Innocent Webb, born August 30, 1851 in Jackson Township, Keokuk County, Iowa. She married Daniel M. Cardwell; he died in 1880. She later married Fred Anson Rockwell; they had two children. Innocent died September 8, 1917 in Ada County, Idaho and was buried in Kohlerlawn Cemetery in Nampa, Canyon County, Idaho, plot section OC, lot 231, space 4.

Warren L Rockwell of Milford, Hillsborough County, NH was born on April 15, 1913, and died at age 83 years old on October 26, 1996.

Leland Lamar Rockwell of Tooele, Tooele County, Utah was born on June 6, 1922, and died at age 84 years old on August 18, 2006.

Clyde E Rockwell of Carpinteria, Santa Barbara County, CA was born on July 4, 1908, and died at age 90 years old on March 3, 1999.

Clyde L Rockwell of Seminole, Seminole County, OK was born on May 25, 1920, and died at age 79 years old on June 12, 1999.

John T Rockwell of East Haven, New Haven County, CT was born on September 21, 1921, and died at age 82 years old on August 7, 2004.

John R Rockwell of Point Marion, Fayette County, PA was born on April 28, 1918, and died at age 53 years old in November 1971.

John Rockwell of Brownsville, Fayette County, Pennsylvania was born on September 3, 1912, and died at age 67 years old in December 1979.

John J Rockwell of Brownsville, Fayette County, PA was born on August 5, 1924, and died at age 77 years old on March 19, 2002.

Benjamin T Rockwell of Homer, Calhoun County, MI was born on March 8, 1921, and died at age 76 years old on May 27, 1997.

Howard J Rockwell of Clio, Genesee County, MI was born on April 30, 1928, and died at age 80 years old on February 8, 2009.

Howard C Rockwell of Binghamton, Broome County, NY was born on December 11, 1905, and died at age 77 years old in March 1983.