Isabel Loved Isabel, 1834

Sheet music publishers in the early to mid-1800s hired artists to create eye-catching illustrations to attract customers at a time when playing musical instruments was a popular pastime. The work of lithographer John Henry Bufford (1810-1870) featured portraits of entertainers and titular characters or elaborate vignettes. Bufford was a friend-- and competitor -- of well-known printmakers Nathaniel Currier and George Endicott.