Born at Andoversford, near Cheltenham, John Alfred Wheeler was the father of James Thomas Wheeler and Alfred Wheeler, who both bacame artists. His interest in art was not thought to have been encouraged, and at the age of nineteen he enlisted as a private in the 2nd Queens Corps which gave him plenty of experience and a knowledge of horses which was to be very useful in his artistic career. His army life was cut short by ill health, and in 1842 he was discharged. In the same year he married, and by 1854 the family were living in Bath, where they remained for almost 25 years.
Wheeler served in the North Somerset Yeomanry as a trumpeter for a time, and in 1854 painted a picture of the North Somerset Yeomanry. During this period he painted several military scenes as well as many hunting and horse portraits.
In 1877 he moved to Hanwell, where he built a house called ‘Bath Villa’. His main purpose for moving was to be close to the London galleries and more available to his many important patrons.
He painted many of the leading racehorses of the day as well as sensitive hunting scenes showing an understanding of horses and hounds. His output was considerable. His patrons including the Dukes of Beaufort, Portland, Westminster, Rutland and Hamilton, the Earls Rosebury and Caithness and Baron Rothschild, as well as many other titled gentry. For these patrons he painted many fine equestrian portraits, both racing and hunting, as well as several very large works.
