Barber, John Warner “View of Hartford from the Eastern Bank of Connecticut River.”

John Warner Barber.  “View of Hartford from the Eastern Bank of Connecticut River.”  From Connecticut Historical Collections.

New Haven: Durrie & Peck, [1838].  3 3/8 x 6 5/8.  Engraved by A. Willard. Discoloration at right due to iron gall ink manuscript on verso, else very good condition.  

Early in the nineteenth century, John Warner Barber (1798-1885), an amateur historian, traveled about Connecticut collecting information on the history and character of all the small towns and regions of the state. At the same time he made sketches as he traveled, of the town centers, harbors, and many local buildings. He took the information and in 1836 produced an important local work entitled Connecticut Historical Collections, which included many illustrations based on his sketches. Most were done in woodcut, but a number were produced by the more elaborate process of aquatint and etching. These prints provide decorative and historically fascinating pictures of Connecticut in the 1830s.