Leland Stanford 1881

Ernest Meissonier painted this portrait of Leland Stanford, the American industrialist and politician, sometime in the late 19th century. Meissonier captures Stanford in a moment of repose, his gaze confident yet measured. Stanford was one of the 'Big Four' who built the Central Pacific Railroad, a venture that dramatically reshaped the American West, facilitating resource extraction, and amplifying existing class divisions and racial tensions. The railroad project, which depended heavily on the labor of Chinese immigrants, underscores how economic progress was often achieved through exploitation and inequality. Stanford's legacy is complex: a philanthropist who founded Stanford University, yet also a figure deeply enmeshed in the economic and social disparities of his time. This portrait invites reflection on the ways that individual achievements are often entangled with broader historical narratives of power, labor, and social justice.