[Group on cowcatcher approaching]
Near Oakland, Maryland
1859
Unidentified photographer
8 x 10 inch salted paper print
Artists’ Excursion Over the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Collection
Maryland Historical Society
[Not Numbered]
Full image and detail.
Harper’s New Monthly Magazine
No. CIX.—June, 1859.—Vol. XIX
“Artists’ Excursion Over the Baltimore and Ohio Rail Road”
Library, bound volume
Maryland Historical Society
AP2.H29
Orchestrated by Maryland Institute [College of Art] Board member William Prescott Smith, an officer of the B&O Company, artists rode from Baltimore to the Ohio River Valley and back in 1859, photographing their travels along the way. Note the view cameras in the lower right corner. The trip was sponsored by Harper’s New Monthly Magazine (article pictured here).
Excerpt from the article: “By steam we travel over sea and land. Steam has turned manufacturer, farmer, and cook (although it must be acknowledged it makes but a sorry business of this last). Latterly, steam and the fine arts have scraped acquaintance…We believe that it marks the commencement of a new era in human progress; and it is meet, therefore, that some record of the event should be given to the world…” -Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, No. CIX.—June, 1859.—Vol. XIX.
