In 1796, Reverend Joseph Steward asked for permission from the state government to open a painting room, and later a museum, on the third floor of the state house, similar to one opened by Artist Charles Wilson Peale in Independence Hall, Philadelphia.

Rev. Steward’s poor health prevented him from holding a full time church position and he made his living as a painter and later as a museum proprietor.

Steward’s Hartford Museum featured natural history items, two-headed animals (like the calf and the pig), and at election times wax figures of famous political men. For citizens of Hartford, the museum was a great opportunity to explore and learn about natural history.

Steward’s Museum became so popular that it outgrew the State House. In 1808 he built a new museum to display his growing collection.

After Steward’s death in 1822, his collection moved to a third location and continued as a museum until 1840.