1873 Warren View of Milwaukee, Wisconsin

A Sylvan, Idyllic Milwaukee.

This is an 1873 Asa Coolidge Warren view of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The view is oriented to the west, and shows the city skyline as seen over a forest - the neighborhood which would develop into Juneau Town, almost certainly as seen from the 1855 North Point Lighthouse. The view is remarkable in that it pre-dates the 1880s architectual explosion. Later views would emphasize Milwaukee's booming factories and tall buildings: here instead is the forest that would in part become Milwaukee's Lake Park.

An Idealized, Idyllic City

This image appeared in Picturesque America, a work intended to promote travel and tourism throughout the United States. As such the cities highlighted in the book were presented as prosperous, appealing places. Many of the views picture perambulating, fashionably-dressed women and children, emphasizing the safety of the city and its suitability for leisurely and well-to-do visitors.

Publication History and Census

The engraving was produced for inclusion in William Cullen Bryant's Picturesque America, or The Land We Live In, which was published in 1873 by D. Appleton and Company in New York. The complete book is well represented in institutional collections, but the separate view is catalogued only in the American Antiquarian Society Library.

Cartographers

Asa Coolidge (A. C.) Warren (1819 - 1904) was a Boston artist. Several of his works were included in Picturesque America; or, The Land We Live In. He also drew twenty-three illustrations for Beyond the Mississippi and was a member of the short-lived Boston Artists’ Association (1841 - 1851).   Further Details...

Daniel Appleton (December 10, 1785 – March 27, 1849) was an American bookseller and publisher who founded one of the most influential publishing houses of 19th-century America. Born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, Appleton began his commercial career in the dry-goods trade, first in his native town and later in Boston, where he also imported merchandise from England. In 1825, he moved to New York City and entered into business with his brother-in-law, Jonathan Leavitt, gradually supplementing his dry-goods inventory with imported English books. Recognizing the greater promise of the book trade, Appleton eventually abandoned dry goods altogether and established a dedicated bookselling and publishing concern at Clinton Hall, near Beekman and Nassau streets. His first publishing venture, William Mason's Crumbs from the Master's Table, appeared in 1831. Appleton's eldest son, William Henry Appleton (1814 – 1899), assumed management of the book department and became a partner in 1838, when the firm adopted the name D. Appleton and Company. Under Daniel Appleton's direction, the house expanded its offerings from importing religious and literary works to include children's books, travel literature, educational publications, and Spanish-language books for the growing Latin American market. Appleton retired in 1848 and died in New York the following year, leaving the business to his sons William Henry, John Adams, George Swett, Daniel Sidney, and Samuel Francis Appleton. Under their leadership, the firm developed into a major international publisher whose catalog embraced literature, history, medicine, science, reference works, travel, and cartography. Its later authors included Charles Darwin, Thomas Henry Huxley, Herbert Spencer, Lewis Carroll, and Arthur Conan Doyle, whose novels, short stories, and essays appeared under the Appleton imprint between 1894 and 1926. The company merged with the Century Company in 1933 to form Appleton-Century, subsequently becoming Appleton-Century-Crofts in 1948; it was acquired by Meredith Publishing Company in 1960.   Further Details...

Robert Hinshelwood (1812-1879) Was a Scots-born American engraver, landscape painter and etcher known in particular for his engravings of landscapes. After having emigrated from England in 1835, he would work for a wide array of publishers, including Harpers and the Continental Bank Note Company. He lived at various points in New York City and Cinncinnati.   Further Details...

Source

Bryant, William Cullen, (editor), Picturesque America; or The Land We Live In. (New York: D. Appleton and Co.) 1873.    

Condition

Very good. Blank on verso.

References

OCLC 987276227.