Eventually based in New York City, he became notable for his depictions of pets such as dogs and kittens.

John Henry Dolph was born on April 18, 1835, in Fort Ann, New York.

Eight years later, John Dolph began an apprenticeship as a carriage painter in Columbus.

[1] Dolph moved to New York City in 1864 where his works were annually exhibited in the National Academy of Design until 1900.

His achievement in the painting of cats was compared to John George Brown's work of street urchins by The Recorder.