Snapshots of the Past

A View of the Capitol of Washington Before It Was Burnt Down by the British [1800] – Historic Photo Reproduction

A View of the Capitol of Washington Before It Was Burnt Down by the British [1800], c. 1800 — historic drawing
A View of the Capitol of Washington Before It Was Burnt Down by the British [1800], c. 1800. Historic drawing from the U.S. Capitol collection.

(Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

Step back in time with A View of the Capitol of Washington Before It Was Burnt Down by the British [1800], a historic drawing rich in period detail. It comes from the Snapshots of the Past collection, curated over 25 years for its historical value.

Order it framed and ready to hang, or unframed to match a frame you already love. A conversation-starting piece for home, office, or as a meaningful gift. Free shipping in the lower 48 states. Snapshots of the Past has been bringing history to the wall since 2001, for tens of thousands of customers worldwide.

A View of the Capitol of Washington Before It Was Burnt Down by the British [1800]

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Drawn around 1800, this watercolor shows the U.S. Capitol as a half-finished building on a raw hillside, more than a decade before British forces burned it in August 1814. The artist, William Russell Birch, was an English-born miniaturist and enamel painter who settled in Philadelphia and produced views of American cities. When Congress moved to Washington in 1800, only the north wing was ready for use, so the scene captures the capital at its earliest stage. The bracketed date in the title was added later and reads backward from the 1814 fire, which is worth keeping in mind when viewing the work as a record of 1800.

Created / publishedc. 1800
Mediumdrawing, watercolor
NotesWilliam Russell Birch
Original scan3,429 × 2,632 px · prints to 11 × 9 in at 300 dpi
ReferenceAMZ-SOTP-HPA-175884

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Snapshots of the Past helps heritage brands, museums, historians and storytellers tell stories with history: historic prints, image licensing and historical storytelling drawn from more than 25 years of research and curation.

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