William Notman
Niagara Falls, with Remnants of the Lewiston Suspension Bridge

ArtistCanadian, born Scotland, 1826–1891
CultureCanadian
Titles
  • Niagara Falls, with Remnants of the Lewiston Suspension Bridge
Datec. 1868
MediumAlbumen silver print from glass negative
DimensionsImage: 13 1/8 × 16 5/16 in. (33.4 × 41.4 cm)
Sheet: 13 1/8 × 16 5/16 in. (33.4 × 41.4 cm)
Mount: 14 13/16 × 20 15/16 in. (37.7 × 53.2 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by Photo Forum 2022
Object number2022.201
Not on view

Explore Further

Department
Photography
Object Type
Description


“It seems a tumbling ocean; and you yourself what a helpless atom amid these vast and eternal workings of gigantic nature!” wrote one 19th-century observer at Niagara Falls. Attempting to match nature’s grandeur with the genius of modern engineering, an 841-foot-long bridge was constructed in 1850–51, spanning the Niagara Gorge and linking the United States and Canada. Less than three years later, the bridge was destroyed by powerful winds; its dangling cables remain visible in William Notman’s photograph. Not until the end of the 19th century would a new bridge be constructed.



Provenance[Lyon & Turnbull, Edinburgh, Scotland, 2020]; [Photovintage, Arnaville, France, 2020]; [Serge Kakou, Paris]; purchased by MFAH, 2022.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Inscribed in pencil, mount verso, bottom left: 25867

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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