The exhibition, which opened Sunday, features several of Ritter's impressionistic renderings of Washington County landscapes.
Some were loaned from Tilley and her brother, Robert Ritter, who attended the opening with numerous family members.
Ritter brought along a snapshot of his uncle, who died in 1944, showing how he painted while hanging from crutches because he was paralyzed from the waist down by polio.
"I think it's very nice that he's being recognized after all this time," said Ritter, 66, of Mechanicsburg, Pa., who loaned two of his nine Ritters to the museum.
The intention of the exhibition was to showcase some pioneers of professional art in Washington County, said museum director Jean Woods.
Each of the artists chosen are represented in the museum's permanent collection, said Woods, who said she borrowed from private collectors and other museums to supplement her museum's pieces.
"It shows the wide range of work that was being done here in Washington County. Obviously, these artists were being patronized," she said.
Woods said she counted herself fortunate to have gotten four works by Johann Frederick Kemmelmeyer (1760-1821), the first Washington County artist with a known body of work, for the exhibition.
The exhibition also includes a variety of work by Claggett Dorsey Spangler (1848-1911), probably Hagerstown's most recognized artist, Woods said.
Other artists included in the exhibit are painters Herman Charles Koehler (1835-1919), William D. Downs (1871-1950), Mary Helen Chrissinger (1879-1968), John Ross Key (1837-1920), Anna K. Miller (1859-1937) and William David Lechler (1809-1889), and sculptor Emily Clayton Bishop (1883-1912).
The exhibition will continue through Feb. 22.
