The Olana Collection

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In celebration of Frederic Church 200, we present over 200 works by Frederic Church, America’s greatest landscape artist.

Olana is the most intact historic artist’s environment in the United States. The Olana State Historic Site Collection encompasses over 90,000 objects made by, belonging to, or related to American artist Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900), the Church family, and other members of their household and social circle. The robust collection includes more than 1,300 paintings and sketches by Church, numerous paintings, works on paper, and sculpture by artists from the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries, decorative art objects from a variety of geographic origins, a large and significant collection of historic garments and textiles, thousands of historic photographs of diverse subjects, and extensive archival material.

A significant portion of the collection consists of items that remained in the main residence at the time the State of New York acquired Olana in 1966. Curatorial staff actively seek acquisitions for the collection of objects that are original to the site, or material closely related to Frederic Church and Olana.

Frederic Edwin Church, "Design for Window on East Facade, Olana," c. 1871-1872, Watercolor and graphite on paper, 14 7/8 x 18 1/2 in. (37.8 x 47 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1982.666

Research, Collection Access, and Loans

The Olana State Historic Site Collection is owned by the State of New York and jointly managed by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and The Olana Partnership. Original archival material including correspondence, financial documents, diaries, and collection artworks and objects not currently displayed at Olana are housed at New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation’s Peebles Island Resource Center.

Researchers seeking information about the Olana Collection or access to transcripts of letters, diaries, and other reference resources may contact:

Maggie Dimock, Associate Curator, The Olana Partnership

Clare Flemming, Research Archivist, The Olana Partnership

For information about in-person collection research visits, submitting loan requests, or requesting images click here

Digitization of over 1,300 artworks by Frederic Church in the Olana Collection has been made possible with generous support from the Henry Luce Foundation. As of August 2026, over 200 of these artworks are available online. Digitization and cataloging of the Olana Collection are ongoing efforts and content is regularly added.

  • Frederic Edwin Church, Ridges in the Blue Mountains, Jamaica, July 1865, Oil on paper, 10 3/8 x 12 1/16 in. (26.4 x 30.6 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1976.3.
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Summer Sunset from Olana, 1874, Oil on paperboard, 11 3/8 x 10 3/8 in. (28.9 x 26.4 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1976.10
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Sunset over a Frozen Lake, c. 1865 – 1875, Oil on paperboard, 9 3/8 x 15 in. (23.8 x 38.1 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1976.12.
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Cotopaxi and Sincholagua, 26 June 1857, Graphite on paper, 10 3/4 x 13 5/8 in. (27.3 x 34.6 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1977.136
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Study for “The Icebergs”, 1860, Graphite and gouache on paper, 12 5/8 x 19 3/8 in. (32.1 x 49.2 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1977.145
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Church of San Francisco, Cuernavaca, Mexico, January – February 1898, Oil on paperboard, 7 3/4 x 11 1/2 in. (19.7 x 29.2 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1977.226
  • Frederic Edwin Church, The Charter Oak, Hartford, August-September 1846, Ink and graphite on paper, 12 1/2 x 17 3/4 in. (31.8 x 45.1 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1977.302
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Cliffs & Rocky Cove, Mount Desert Island, c. August 1850/08, Oil on paperboard, 12 1/8 x 16 1/8 in. (30.8 x 41 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1978.22
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Ridge near Cuttingsville, Vermont, 1 August 1849, Graphite and gouache on paper, 11 7/16 x 15 3/8 in. (29.1 x 39.1 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1980.1426
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Birch Tree Struck by Lightning, Mount Desert Island, August 1850, Graphite and gouache on paper, 11 13/16 x 14 9/16 in. (30 x 37 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1980.1442
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Forest Pool, c. 1858-1860, Oil on paper mounted on canvas, 12 5/8 x 12 9/16 in. (32.1 x 31.9 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1980.1870.A
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Design for Window on East Facade, Olana, c. 1871-1872, Watercolor and graphite on paper, 14 7/8 x 18 1/2 in. (37.8 x 47 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1982.666
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Untitled (Sketch for Stencil Decoration, Dining Room Cornice), c. 1873-1874, Oil and graphite on paper, 6 5/8 x 17 7/8 in. (16.8 x 45.4 cm). New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1982.755
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Mountain Lake, Twilight, 1850-1856, Oil on paperboard, 5 1/4 x 9 1/4 in. (13.3 x 23.5 cm), New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1981.40a
  • Frederic Edwin Church, Sunrise, 1847, Oil on paper, 8 1/2 x 14 3/8 in. (21.6 x 36.5 cm), New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Olana State Historic Site. Gift of Olana Preservation, Inc. and Museum Purchase, OL.1978.11