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[Waterfront fire, probably burning of the Washington Navy Yard, 1814, Anacostia River, Washington, D.C.] – Vintage Wall Art

[Waterfront fire, probably burning of the Washington Navy Yard, 1814, Anacostia River, Washington, D.C.], [ca. 1815] — historic drawing
[Waterfront fire, probably burning of the Washington Navy Yard, 1814, Anacostia River, Washington, D.C.], [ca. 1815]. Historic drawing from the Fire Engines 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

This historic drawing of [Waterfront fire, probably burning of the Washington Navy Yard, 1814, Anacostia River, Washington, D.C.] brings a moment of history to your wall. Sourced directly from the Library of Congress, it represents an authentic piece of documented history.

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[Waterfront fire, probably burning of the Washington Navy Yard, 1814, Anacostia River, Washington, D.C.]

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A small watercolor of a waterfront with fire rising from it, the sheet is titled by its cataloger as a view of the Anacostia River during the burning of the Washington Navy Yard in 1814. That August, American officers set fire to the yard's stores and vessels rather than let them fall to advancing British troops, an event that shook the young capital. The drawing is painted in watercolor and wash on laid paper watermarked J. Whatman, and its attribution rests on provenance rather than a signature. A caption on the mat instead calls it a riverscape with the city reflected, a reading that sits uneasily with the fire in the title.

Created / published[ca. 1815]
Medium1 drawing : watercolor and wash on laid paper.
NotesTitle devised by cataloger. Caption on mat: #17 - Riverscape with city reflected." Attribution based on provenance. Watermark: J. Whatman. DLC/PP-1904:42176.17. mi / 860218. This catalog record contains preliminary or unverified data from a project done in BRS software
SubjectsFires. Waterfronts. Naval yards & naval stations. United States--History--War of 1812.United States--District of Columbia--Washington (D.C.).
SourceLibrary of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
Original scan1,444 × 1,150 px · prints to 5 × 4 in at 300 dpi
ReferenceAMZ-SOTP-HPA-219387

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