Hunt was one of the first American artists to draw with charcoal rather than chalk or graphite pencil. In 1877, he visited North Easton, Massachusetts to paint a portrait of the financier and art patron, Oliver Ames. At this time Hunt made several drawings of the town of North Easton, viewed from across a millpond. This drawing portrays the scene around mid-afternoon. William Morris Hunt (American, 1824–1879)