1890 Brown / Maine Central R.R. View of Crawford Notch, New Hampshire

Gateway to the White Mountains.

This is a striking 1890 photogravure view of Crawford Notch in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, based on a drawing by Harrison B. Brown, issued for the Maine Central Railroad. This work was published at the height of the tourist boom in the White Mountains, when posh hotels catered to wealthy East Coast urbanites on extended summer sojourns.

A Closer Look

The view looks northwards through Crawford Notch, with Mount Willey at left and the Saco River and Mt. Jackson, the southern end of the 'Presidential Range,' at right. Mount Willey is named for a family that died in a rockslide nearby in 1826; their house was incredibly unharmed by the rockslide and remained until it was burned by a fire in 1898, but a museum now stands on the site. The bridge at left is the distinctive Willey Brook Bridge (also known as the Willey Brook Trestle) through Crawford Notch; atypically for old railroads, travelers can still cross this bridge today via the Conway Scenic Railroad. At the far end of the bridge is the Mount Willey Section House, built in 1887 to house a section foreman, his family, and a small crew who were tasked with examining and maintaining this section of the line.

Crawford Notch

Crawford Notch is one of several well-known notches, or deep mountain passes, in the White Mountains of New Hampshire that are known for their remarkable natural beauty. Originally known as 'White Mountain Notch,' it follows the course of the Saco River (at right) on the western side of Mt. Washington and the Presidential Range (another well-known notch, Pinkham Notch, is on the east side of Mt. Washington). The Notch has long been a major thoroughfare through the White Mountains region, first by turnpike (1803), then by railroad (1875), and finally by paved automobile road (U.S. Route 302). The Notch is named for a pioneering family that settled in the area, a descendant of which (Geo. T. Crawford) produced a large and important map of the White Mountains in 1890. Other members of the family built and operated the Crawford House, one of the earliest grand hotels in the area (built in 1850); it closed in 1975 and burned down shortly afterwards. However, the AMC acquired the land and built the Highland Center, a haven for hikers and tourists, on the same site.

The Maine Central Railroad

The Maine Central Railroad was chartered in 1856 and began operations in 1862, merging the Androscoggin and Kennebec Railroad with the Penobscot and Kennebec Railroad. Over the next several decades, it expanded to link up with Portland, Maine, where it met the Boston and Maine Railroad. (The Maine Central initially was built with a wider 'Canadian' or 'Portland gauge' and had to retrofit its line to facilitate such connections with other railways.) Portland became a great meeting point of railways (used for both freight and passengers) heading northwards into northern New England and Canada, and therefore was a logical place for the company to move its main office. By the late 19th century, the railroad's lines extended to New Brunswick and Newfoundland.

In 1888, the company leased the Portland and Ogdensburg Railway (the line seen here), which ran through the White Mountains via Crawford Notch to St. Johnsbury, Vermont, where it linked with the Canadian Pacific-owned Southeastern Railway, providing a connection to Montreal. Two years later, the Maine Central leased the Quebec Division (the Upper Coos Railroad and the Hereford Railway), which provided a link between the White Mountains and the Quebec Central Railway, terminating in Quebec City.

Although the company ran into the same problems as other American railroads in the mid-20th century, it was able to remain independent for longer due to more steady demand for its freight services. Still, it was forced to sell its operations to Guilford Transportation Industries (now Pan Am Railways) in 1981. Some portions of the former network are still operated by Pan Am for freight purposes, while the Conway Scenic Railroad utilizes a portion for its tourist trains, including the Willey Brook Bridge seen here and the similar Frankenstein Trestle further south (named for local artist Godfrey Frankenstein, not the literary character).

America's Favorite Mountain Retreat

At the time of this view's publication, the White Mountains were the preferred rustic retreat of urbanites from Boston, New York City, and other coastal cities, especially in the summer, when the heat and smells of the city became oppressive. With railways providing ready access, an entire economy developed to cater to this clientele, including luxury hotels that were directly accessible by the railways. Aside from passenger railroads, logging railroads also began to crisscross the region in the decades after the U.S. Civil War (some lines, including the Maine Central, carried both passengers and freight), allowing for a rapid expansion of the logging industry. Forests were clear-cut throughout this region around the turn of the 20th century, but they began to regrow almost as quickly. The establishment of the White Mountain National Forest in 1918, along with a decline in logging in northern New England, laid the groundwork for the magnificent forests seen today.

Photogravure

Photogravure printing is an intaglio process developed in the 19th century that allowed for the high-quality reproduction of artwork. It combines photographic techniques with traditional etching: an image is first transferred to a sensitized gelatin tissue using a photographic negative, then adhered to a polished copper plate. The gelatin hardens in proportion to the light exposure, creating a tonal resist, after which the plate is etched with acid. This produces tiny cells of varying depth that can hold ink in different amounts, enabling smooth gradations of tone. When printed on a press, photogravure yields exceptionally rich and subtle tonal ranges, making it a favored process for art books, portfolios, and high-end prints before the advent of offset printing.

Publication History and Census

This view is based on a drawing by Harrison Bird Brown, which was specially commissioned by the Maine Central Railroad and printed by Lakeside Press in Portland, Maine. It is one of a set of two photogravure prints of Brown's drawings, the other being 'Mount Washington from Frankenstein,' both of which are very rare today. The only known examples in institutional collections are held by Dartmouth College (curiously cataloged as printed by R.R. Donnelley and Sons, perhaps a variant printing), the New Hampshire Historical Society, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and the Portland (Maine) Museum of Art.

Cartographers

Harrison Bird Brown (February 1, 1831 - March 11, 1915) was a Portland, Maine-based artist, surveyor, and painter, primarily of landscapes and nautical scenes in his native New England. Brown began as a sign and banner painter, suggesting little formal training as a painter. He also worked as a surveyor for a short time, even doing so in San Francisco in 1852 before returning to Portland. He was aided early in his artistic career and afterwards by John Neal (1793 - 1876), the most esteemed figure of the Portland arts and literary scene. With Neal, Brown helped establish the Portland Society of Art. By 1858, his work was being displayed at the National Academy of Design, and soon afterwards at the Boston Athenaeum. He also displayed art at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition and regularly at the Poland Spring Art Gallery. Most of Brown's paintings dealt either with maritime scenes or the White Mountains, a popular subject as they became a more accessible tourist destination. Two of Brown's three children died young and his wife Sarah died in 1886; afterwards, in 1892, Brown moved to London to live with his only surviving child, a daughter named Nellie, where he lived for the rest of his life.   Further Details...

Lakeside Press (c. 1889 - 1921), not to be confused with a Chicago-based company of the same name, was a Portland, Maine-based printer. Most of their output consisted of postcards, prints, ephemera, and some non-fiction books related to Maine and environs, including tourist guides for Portland. The firm specialized in photomechanical reproduction of photographs.   Further Details...

Condition

Very good. Some edge toning not affecting printed image.

References

OCLC 13534101. New Hampshire Historical Society Object ID: 1976.031.05. Photograph Study Collection, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Image Number: LC000324. Portland Museum of Art, Museum Collection, P409.