Item Info

Item 1, top:  The caption "Poplar Straben Holz--W" means Poplar Street Lumber [Wharf] in German.  Many lumberyards lined the Delaware River along the Northern Liberties piers in the 1800s.  This image shows a full lumberyard behind the Poplar Street Lumber Wharf, located at then Pier 39.  The bustling activity of the many ships on the Delaware River illustrates the significance of Philadelphia for the lumber industry.  Engraving (see *Note below) for an unidentified German-language publication, 14.5 x 8 cm, c. 1875.

*Note:  An 1870 albumen print by Frederick Gutekunst was the source for this engraving; the original print was used for an advertisement for the Patterson & Lippincott lumberyard.  This subsequent engraving for a German publication eliminated the name Lippincott from the sign, and replaced it with "Henry C. Patterson & Co." 

Item 2, middle:  Image of a steamship wharf.  Although the location is unidentified, this image is most likely one of the numerous wharves along the Delaware River in Philadelphia, c. 1850s.  The activity depicted centers around commercial trade, with dock workers tending to barrels and bundled goods on the wharf and in the cargo shed, and wagons and a steamship transporting goods.  Engraving for an unidentified publication, 17 x 11 cm, undated.

Item 3, bottom:  Caption reads, "Interior of Steamship Landing, Philadelphia."  The Pennsylvania Railroad's emigrant depot was at Washington Avenue and Pier 53 on the Delaware River.  It was built in 1873, to receive the larger, long-distance steamships bringing the growing number of immigrants from Europe into Philadelphia.  This 1875 engraving shows many passengers disembarking at the busy depot, as well as cargo being handled by a hoist.  Horse-drawn wagons and carriages are also there, for transporting passengers and goods.  The Washington Avenue Immigration Station operated at this location until 1915, when it was demolished.  In 2010, the landing area was opened as an historical park called Washington Avenue Green.  In 2014, Pier 53 was renamed Washington Avenue Pier, and a sculpture called "Land Buoy" by sculptor Jody Pinto was placed at the end of the pier, to commemorate the era of immigration.  Engraving by artist Frank Schell and engraver Laudereach, for an unidentified publication, 18.25 x 10.25 cm, 1875.