Strangers – Today

Sir William Drummond Stewart, December 26, 1795 – April 28, 1871

Sir William Drummond Stewart was a Scottish-born adventurer and military officer. He was the second of five sons of Scottish nobleman Sir George Stewart. Stewart joined a regiment of the British Army and saw action in the Waterloo campaign before retiring from his military career. He later embarked for America, seeking adventure in the American West. He arrived in 1832 and traveled in the company of naturalists, explorers, and mountain men for over six years, crossing paths with the likes of Thomas Nuttall, John James Audubon, Daniel Boone, and William Clark. His travels were documented in oil paintings by artist Alfred Jacob Miller. During his time in America, Stewart also engaged in a romantic relationship with Antoine Clément, a French Canadian-Cree fur trapper. The two returned to Scotland following the death of Stewart's older brother, as Stewart assumed the title of Laird of Grandtully and Baronet of Murthly and Blair. Stewart returned to travel further in America throughout the 1840s. Despite his decade-long relationship with Clément, Stewart had a son, though he died in a sword-swallowing accident three years before his father.

Portrait courtesy of the Missouri Historical Society — Source — Source — Source

José Leandro Palacios, c. 1782 — January 6, 1836

José Leandro Palacios was a Venezuelan military officer and diplomat. He fought in multiple conflicts for Venezuela's independence from Spain, including under Simón Bolívar during the Second Republic of Venezuela, rising to the rank of colonel. Following the formation of Gran Colombia, Palacios served as a diplomat, including as Consul General to the United States, beginning in 1824. Following his time in the United States, he also served in Rio de Janeiro, Paris, and London.

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Isaac A. Coles, 1780 — 1841

Isaac A. Coles was an American politician and military officer. Born into a wealthy and influential family of enslavers and plantation owners in Virginia, Coles served as Thomas Jefferson's private secretary as a young man, from 1805 to 1809. He went on to serve in the army during the War of 1812, where he rose through the ranks to reach the rank of colonel. Later in life, Coles served briefly in the Virginia state legislature. His brother, Edward Coles, was a frequent visitor to the Athenaeum before becoming a shareholder. Edward is listed as the introducing member for Isaac on this visit. Isaac also visited the Athenaeum on multiple occasions.

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