From their small beginnings of painting college buildings throughout the United States, The College Watercolor Group quickly became a nationally known print supplier. Having bought the Wertsville store (later Peacock’s), in the mid 1960’s, they slowly kept renovating the building until they used its entire 10,000 sq. ft. More and more colleges and universities signed on to have prints made until they were producing color prints of buildings at 400 separate institutions. Soon banks, first in New Jersey, later all over the country wanted local scenes painted they could sell to their customers or even give them away in promotions.
Originally artists would sit around a large lazy susan table in which each artist would add one color to a print and the table would spin. Later they erected long tables and had the prints stationary and the artists were on rolling chairs. More and more artists were added to the staff, many with formal training, others, local housewives with artistic talent. As more professional artists were added to the staff, the quality greatly improved. The sketches became more detailed and the painting and blending of colors became more subtle. One of the artists, E.B. Walden, a graduate of Dartmouth and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, began signing his pictures “Gray”, based on a watercolor hue “Davy’s Gray”. Soon, each artist began using the Gray surname but a different first name. Walden became Davis Gray, with over a dozen other artists taking the last name. From this play on names, the business became known as “Gray’s Watercolors”.
As the American Revolution Bicentennial approached, towns and cities across the country commissioned historic prints. Many were of historic events that took place in their area; some were of towns as they had originally looked in the past, and still others of historic buildings that were being threatened. Even cities such as Chicago and Detroit commissioned downtown scenes. All of this required a great deal of historical research. Each week thousands of prints were being produced. Gray’s Watercolors was now the largest employer in East Amwell Township working two and three shifts with over 75 people engaged in painting, marketing, shipping, etc. As the Bicentennial ended and the 1970’s drew to a close business began to slow down as well. Banking regulations in the early ‘80’s were undergoing sweeping changes and the premium era that had supplied so much business ended. Gray’s began to downsize and went back to their roots – painting college and university buildings. By the mid 1980’s the building was sold to Sarah Peacock, and Gray’s Watercolors moved to Princeton with the McConaughy’s.
Gray’s Watercolors had produced over 4,000 different scenes and sold over one million prints – all produced in Wertsville! In the late 1990’s and into this millennium, art galleries began recognizing the uniqueness of Gray’s Watercolors and many exhibitions have been held throughout the country –from Flemington to Philadelphia and even as far west as Michigan. In the spring of 2014 Paul McConaughy passed away. Wilda shares her time between her home in Mississippi and at her son Jon’s home in Hopewell. Gray’s Watercolors however is still around operating out of Mississippi. You can find it online @ grayswatercolors.com. Many of their original historic prints also show up on ebay.
Jim Davidson,
East Amwell Historian