Fairmount Waterworks

Fairmount Waterworks

This view of the Fairmount Waterworks from the west bank of the Schuylkill River is a close copy of an engraving by English landscape artist William Henry Bartlett (1809-1854), which was published in his American Scenery (London, 1840).

The waterworks facility was designed by Frederick Graff (1774-1847) and began operation in 1815. The covered Upper Ferry Bridge, depicted in the distance, was built in 1812 and destroyed by fire in 1838. The locks of the Schuylkill Navigation Company are seen at the right. The "fair mount" above the waterworks complex is the present site of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

24" x 32"

Oil on canvas attached to wood panel; gilt frame

Gift of Samuel J. Dornsife.

General Collection, Museum Collection, The Athenaeum of Philadelphia

1975.06.01

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