Monday, August 28, 2006

The Wainwright Lithograph Collection of Philadelphia

Roper's Gymnasium'Roper's Gymnasium.
274 Market Street, Philadelphia. [E. W. Clay].
(Philadelphia: From Childs & Inman's Press, ca. 1831.)'

Panorama of Philadelphia from the State House Steeple 1838'Panorama of Philadelphia from the State House Steeple. East.
Drawn from nature and on stone by J. C. Wild.
(Philadelphia: Lith. of Wild & Chevalier No. 72 Dock St., c1838.)'

Philadelphia, from the State House steeple 1849'Philadelphia, from the State House steeple, North, East and South.
Sketched from nature by Joseph Thoma ; Drawn on stone by Leo Elliot ;
N. Friend's Lithc. Offce. 141 Walnut Street ; Printed at T. Sinc. c.1849.'


Railroad Depot at Philadelphia 1832'Railroad Depot at Philadelphia. / [W. L. Breton].
(Philadelphia: [Kennedy & Lucas], 1832).'

Philadelphia horse & buggy bazaar 1848'Philadelphia horse & buggy bazaar,
S. E. Corner of Ninth & George,
bet. Walnut & Chesnut Sts. Philadelphia.
On stone by W. H. Rease No. 17 Sth 5th St. Phila.
(Philadelphia: Printed by F. Kuhl Phil., [April 1848]).'

Two of the killers 1855'Two of the killers.
(Philadelphia: Published by J. Childs, 46 1/2 Walnut St., ca. 1855.).'

Rockhill & Wilson, tailors & clothiers of men & boys wear 1857'Rockhill & Wilson, tailors & clothiers of men & boys wear,
Nos. 205 & 207 Chestnut St & 28 South 6th Street.
Lith. by W. H. Rease, N.E. cor. 4th & Chestnut Sts.
(Philadelphia: Printed by Wagner & McGuigan, 1857).'

Philadelphia Gas Works 1852'Philadelphia Gas Works. From the South West.
John C. Cresson, engineer.
(Philadelphia: Printed by J. T. Bowen, ca. 1852.).'

Joseph Feinour & Son stove store 1845'Joseph Feinour & Son stove store and Joseph Feinhour's tin,
copper brass & iron ware house 213-215 South Front
Street, Philadelphia by W. H. Rease, 17, So. 5th St.
(Printed by Wagner & McGuigan Lithrs. 100 Chesnut St., ca. 1845.).'

Schuyler furnishing undertaker carriages 1848'P. R. Schuyler, furnishing undertaker,
N.E. cor. Beaver & 4th Sts., Philadelphia. N. B. lots for sale
in Monument Cemetery on reasonable terms. Also single interments.
Drawn on stone by W. H. Rease, No. 17, So. 5th. St.
(Philadelphia: Printed by F. Kuhl, ca. 1848.).'

Jenkins & Co. grocery and tea store 1848'J. C. Jenkins & Co. grocery and tea store,
S.W. corner of Chestnut and 12th Streets, Philadelphia
Desnd. & drawn by Ellwood D. Long.
(W. Stott's Lith Press, No. 97, Chesnut above 3rd Sts., ca. 1848.).'

Birdseye view of horizontorium building 1832'Horizontorium.
From the original drawing by Wm. Mason in the possession of
Charles N. Bancker Esqr.; Drawn on stone by J.J. Barker;
[Printed by Childs & Inman]
(Published by R. H. Hobson 147 Chestnut Street, c1832.).'

Pennsylvania Hall burning 1838'Destruction by fire of Pennsylvania Hall, the new building
of the Abolition Society, on the night of 17th May.
[J. C. Wild] (Philadelphia: [J. T. Bowen], 1838).'


'Philadelphia in the Romantic Age of Lithography: An illustrated history of early lithography in Philadelphia with a descriptive list of Philadelphia scenes made by Philadelphia lithographers before 1866' by Nicholas B. Wainwright was a scholarly publication from 1958 and nearly 300 of the illustrations are available at Philadelphia's The Library Company.

I would not have predicted that I would actually go through each of the images, nor find the overall collection particularly fascinating. But:
"In them one sees the appearance of the city in remarkable detail. Since many of the lithographs were made for advertising purposes, there is naturally a fine range of shops, hotels, and industrial establishments. There are also a variety of public buildings and churches, and genre scenes of interest." [Walter Muir Whitehall book review pdf file p.182]
The collection also serves as an exhibition of all manner and style (and quality) of lithographic illustration from the first half of the 19th century; so, despite my not knowing Philadelphia from a bag of wheat, I found this collection to be an absorbing timesink. In some cases further notes about each image can be (convolutedly) found through the wolfPAC database (linked from the main page above).

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