Samuels, Peggy 1922–2007

(Peggy Lucinda Bardsley, Peggy Bardsley Samuels)

OBITUARY NOTICE—

See index for CA sketch: Born November 27, 1922, in Brooklyn, NY; died August 23, 2007, in East Falmouth, MA. Businesswoman, art collector, art dealer, art historian, and author. Samuels had the talent and good fortune to turn a hobby into a successful career. She and her husband, Howard, became interested in the art of the American West while operating a novelty shop that sold chess sets and puzzles. They began traveling to auctions and antique sales to collect western art, and eventually they were able to sell their shop and launch a new venture as art dealers. The research they pursued as purveyors of western art grew into their first book, The Illustrated Biographical Encyclopedia of the American West (1976). Written by amateur art historians, the book nonetheless earned the respect of its critics and marked the beginning of a writing career that spanned more than twenty years. Samuels and her husband wrote another well-received book, Frederic Remington: A Biography (1982), which was praised for the fresh perspective it offered on the artist and his frontier milieu. The Samuels couple continued their collaboration until Howard's death in 2002. Other book titles include Everyone's Guide to Buying Art (1984), Remembering the Maine (1995), and Teddy Roosevelt at San Juan: The Making of a President (1997).

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Los Angeles Times, August 29, 2007, p. B8.

New York Times, August 28, 2007, p. C12.