Lawrence finished his original portrait of West for the American Academy of Fine Arts after the subject's death in 1820, and the painting arrived in New York from London in 1822. Lawrence made a copy of it while it was still in his possession and it was from the copy, now owned by the National Gallery, London, that Godson made this watercolor. West is depicted in the long robe he wore in his studio and delivering a lecture on color theory, which he had presented at the Royal Academy.

The subject was the daughter of James and Kezia (Seabury) Weeks. She lived at 180 East 75th Street and was a member of the Colony Club. Her portrait was a gift to the Society from her brother.

The subject, a member of the New Jersey branch of the Van Cortlandt family, owned considerable property at Second River (now Belleville), New Jersey. He made his home, however, in New York in a "pleasantly situated Dwelling House on Broadway adjoining Trinity Churchyard" (see "The Old New York Families," edited by L. Effingham de Forest, n. p.).

Webb was born in Wethersfield, Connecticut, a descendant of Richard Webb of Gloucestershire, England, who settled in Boston in 1632 and moved to Hartford, Connecticut, in 1635. He fought in the Revolutionary War, rising to the rank of brigadier general. He was one of the original thirteen officers who met at the Verplanck House in Fishkill, New York, in 1783 to form the Society of the Cincinnati, and when Washington was inaugurated president, Samuel Webb was the grand marshal of the proceedings.

The subject was born in Lorient, France, where his father, Aaron Vail (1758-1813), a New York merchant, was United States consul and commercial agent. He came to live in the U.S. after his father's death and later served in various capacities with the U.S. State Dept. under Presidents James Monroe, John Quincy Adams, and Andrew Jackson. He was the grandfather of Madame Jacques de Bon, wife of the donor.

The subject's maiden name was Annette Gartley. She and her husband, a box manufacturer and builder, first made their home at 39 Gouverneur Street and subsequently at 47 East 34th Street. This portrait was a gift to the Society from the subject's grandson.

Urey, a native of Walkerton, Indiana, became a distinguished research chemist and university professor. In 1934 he was the recipient of the Nobel Prize for his discovery of heavy hydrogen. He taught at Johns Hopkins, Columbia, University of Chicago, and University of California. This portrait, which shows him working at his desk, was probably painted in his office at Columbia.