The American painting collection was established by Bartlett Arkell, the founder and first president of the Beech-Nut Packing Company. The paintings he collected are recognized today as some of the best works created by leading late 19th- and early 20th-century American artists. Arkell built the art gallery attached to the Canajoharie Library in 1927, and worked with the Macbeth Gallery in New York to acquire a remarkable collection of American paintings. The collection includes works by Winslow Homer, and important paintings by George Inness, William M. Chase, Childe Hassam, Mary Cassatt, Georgia O’Keeffe, Andrew Wyeth, Maurice Prendergast, Robert Henri.
The museum has a growing collection of Mohawk Valley material that includes photographs, diaries, letters, and portraits of individuals and businesses of both local and national importance.
The Beech-Nut Packing Company Collection, a major resource within this collection, includes photographs of early factory life, company scrapbooks, and marketing materials.
The mission of the Arkell Museum at Canajoharie and the Canajoharie Library is to promote and celebrate the understanding and enjoyment of the arts and humanities in Canajoharie, the Mohawk Valley, and beyond.
The Arkell Museum collects, preserves, researches and presents American Art and Mohawk Valley History, and promotes active participation in art and history related activities, to enhance knowledge, appreciation and personal exploration by all.
