Mr. Stoddard (1861-1940), with the assistance of Howard Curtis (1906-1989), painted the murals as part of the Public Works of Art Program. Frederick Stoddard had a long career of mural painting, with sites including the Bell Telephone Co., St. Louis’s City Hall and Odeon Theater, several New York City public school buildings, and churches and homes in various states. He moved to Gloucester in 1922 and held offices at the Gloucester Society for Artists and the North Shore Art Association. He painted at least ten New Deal murals in Gloucester, including, Give us this Day our Daily Bread, for Central Grammar School, now on view at the O’Maley Middle School, three panels for the Eastern Avenue School, and a series of fish and animals in natural settings at the Forbes School. (http://www.sawyerfreelibrary.org/more-aboutus/history-of-librar/wpamural-paintings/)