Snapshots of the Past

[President Grant and Don Pedro starting the Corliss engine at the centennial, Philadelphia, 1876] – Vintage Wall Art

[President Grant and Don Pedro starting the Corliss engine at the centennial, Philadelphia, 1876], [1876 May 27.] — antique engraving
[President Grant and Don Pedro starting the Corliss engine at the centennial, Philadelphia, 1876], [1876 May 27.]. Antique engraving from the Philadelphia collection.

(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

Few images capture their era like this antique engraving of [President Grant and Don Pedro starting the Corliss engine at the centennial, Philadelphia, 1876]. Sourced directly from the Library of Congress, it represents an authentic piece of documented history.

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[President Grant and Don Pedro starting the Corliss engine at the centennial, Philadelphia, 1876]

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President Ulysses S. Grant and Brazil's Emperor Dom Pedro II set the great Corliss steam engine in motion in Machinery Hall, the ceremonial opening of the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia on May 10, 1876. Theodore R. Davis made the sketch, and this wood engraving appeared in Harper's Weekly later that month, bringing the scene to readers who could not travel to the fairgrounds. The Corliss engine drove the exhibition's machinery displays through a network of belts and shafts, and it became one of the fair's most celebrated attractions. The print shows how the event was presented to the public as a showcase of American industrial and inventive achievement.

Created / published[1876 May 27.]
Medium1 print : wood engraving.
SubjectsWood engraving from a sketch by Theodore R. Davis. Illus. in: Harper's Weekly (1876 May 27). This record contains unverified, old data from caption card. Caption card tracings: Machinery; Exhibitions--1876; Portrait file (2); Shelf.
SourceLibrary of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
Original scan1,032 × 1,536 px · prints to 3 × 5 in at 300 dpi
ReferenceAMZ-SOTP-HPA-127241

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