Archive of the Past

Image: “City Skyline from Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, Pa.” published by the Central News Co. (c. 1951). From the Andrew J. Bramlett Collection.

In the foreground of this postcard is the Eakins Oval in Fairmount Park, with a large statue of George Washington.

Philadelphia’s Benjamin Franklin Parkway was a product of the City Beautiful movement, and construction began in 1917. The Parkway is today home to a variety of cultural and civic sites, as well as numerous outdoor sculptures.

[The interior of a kabuki theater] 1 print : woodcut, color ; 30.8 x 45 cm (sheet) | Print shows a full audience of men and women at a kabuki theater.

Image: [The interior of a kabuki theater] by Kiyotsune Torii (1765). From the Library of Congress (www.loc.gov/resource/jpd...)

Kabuki is a traditional form of Japanese theater, and dates back to the late sixteenth or early seventeenth centuries. Kabuki originally was performed entirely by women but became all male in 1629. The word kabuki is written with three characters, meaning “song,” “dance,” and “skill.”

Image: “Domes of Yosemite, From Painting by Bierstadt” (undated). From the National Archives at College Park (catalog.archives.gov/id/155824905)

His work helped to bring the landscapes of the West to the audiences of the East, leading to a push for their conservation.

This lantern slide is a copy of a painting by Albert Bierstadt called the “Domes of the Yosemite.” Bierstadt was a German immigrant best known for his landscapes of the American West.

Image: “Africae nova Tabula. Auct. Hen. Hondio.” By Gerhard Mercator, Jodocus Hondius, and Hendrik Hondius (1631). From the David Rumsey map Collection (www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet...)

A dragon can be seen in West Africa, and sea monsters are shown terrorizing ships off the coast. In the interior of Africa, massive mountain chains can be seen, where none exist in reality.

This 1631 map of Africa was published in Amsterdam. The map is geographically fairly accurate and contains recognizable depictions of animals like elephants, ostriches, lions, and crocodiles. However, it also shows how little Europe knew about Africa in the seventeenth century.

Henry Knox Portrait of Henry Knox (1750-1806), in Revolutionary War uniform, standing in a fort setting with artillery and an American flag behind him.

Image: “Henry Knox” by Johnson, Fry, & Co. (1862). From the Tennessee Historical Society (cdm15138.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/coll...)

In 1789, he became Washington’s Secretary of War, making him part of the original presidential cabinet. Knox is remembered for his role in shaping the federal government’s policy regarding Native Americans. He retired in 1795 and died in 1806.

Henry Knox worked as a bookseller in Boston in the 1770s, and at the start of the American Revolution, he quickly volunteered to serve. By the end of the war, Knox was serving at Washington’s side as chief artillery officer.

Image 1: [Lantern slide of the Wainwright Building] (undated). From the Andrew J. Bramlett Collection.
Image 2: [Lantern slide of the Wainwright Tomb] (undated). From the Andrew J. Bramlett Collection.

After the Wainwright Building was completed, Mr. Wainwright asked Sullivan to design a tomb for his wife. Sometimes called the “Taj Mahal of St. Louis,” it can be found in Bellefontaine Cemetery.

St. Louis’ Wainwright Building, designed by architect Louis Sullivan and completed in 1891, is often regarded as the first skyscraper. However, the architect did not just work on soaring office buildings.

After the Wainwright Building was completed, Mr. Wainwright asked Sullivan to design a tomb for his wife. Sometimes called the “Taj Mahal of St. Louis,” it can be found in Bellefontaine Cemetery.

Image: [Lantern slide of the Wainwright Tomb] (undated). From the Andrew J. Bramlett Collection.

St. Louis’ Wainwright Building, designed by architect Louis Sullivan and completed in 1891, is often regarded as the first skyscraper. However, the architect did not just work on soaring office buildings.

In the biography, Miller seeks to return Pinchot to his rightful place in the conservation canon while showing how his views evolved and changed over time. It is an insightful biography, but I wish it were more detailed in some areas, particularly in the coverage of his time under Roosevelt.

However, as important as Pinchot was to the conservation movement, he is sometimes held up as a foil to John Muir because of their disagreement over the Hetch Hetchy project at Yellowstone.

Gifford Pinchot was a leader of the conservation movement during the Progressive Era and was closely aligned with Theodore Roosevelt. His firing in 1910 was the catalyst for Roosevelt’s break with William Howard Taft, setting the stage for the 1912 election.

Book review: “Gifford Pinchot and the Making of Modern Environmentalism” by Char Miller

www.goodreads.com/book/show/12...

Image: “The City Hall and Stephen M. White Statue, Los Angeles, California” published by the Longshaw Card Co. (c. 1952). From the Andrew J. Bramlett Collection.

This statue was erected in 1908, seven years after his death, and was moved around several times. In 1989, it was placed in San Pedro, where it can still be found today.

When this postcard of the Los Angeles City Hall was made, a statue of Senator Stephen M. White was directly outside. His most important accomplishment was developing San Pedro, rather than Santa Monica, as the Los Angeles Harbor.

To his excellency James Glen Esq. ... this prospect of Charles Town is most humbly inscrib'd .... - NYPL Digital Collections NYPL's Digital Collections is a living database featuring prints, photographs, maps, manuscripts, video, and more unique research materials.

Image: “The ichnography of Charles-town. At high water. A sketch of the harbour.” by Bishop Roberts and W. H. Toms (1739). From the New York Public Library, The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, (digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/32bed9...)

After moving in the 1680s, it became one of the most important ports in Colonial America and served as the gateway to the South. It was not until after the American Revolution that the name was officially changed to Charleston.

Charleston, South Carolina, was founded in 1670 as Charles Town and was named after Charles II of England. It was the first English settlement in modern South Carolina.

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Image 3: [1000 (One Thousand) Handed Buddha] by Sidney Gamble (1917). From the Duke University Libraries (repository.duke.edu/dc/gamble/RL...)

Image 4: [Circus & Gods] by Sidney Gamble (1917). From the Duke University Libraries (repository.duke.edu/dc/gamble/RL...)