Item Info

Item 1, top:  Image of the bustling activity at the Delaware Avenue Market, catering especially to the oyster industry, c. 1880s.  Philadelphia was convenient to the oyster-rich areas of the Delaware Bay, the Chesapeake Bay, and the New Jersey shore.  A busy wharf, located where then-Dock Creek met the Delaware River, grew in importance to the oyster trade by the mid-1850s.  With the 1860s trifecta of the paving over of Dock Creek, the expansion of Delaware Avenue, and the arrival of a Pennsylvania Railroad freight depot, the Dock Street Wharf and its conjoined Delaware Avenue Market became the major hub for transporting oysters and fresh produce locally.  From there, oysters were sold to venders, restaurants, and the rapid proliferation of oyster bars.  Engraving for an unidentified publication, 21 x 15.5 cm, undated (but likely c. 1880s).

Item 2, bottom:  Image captioned, "Delaware River, Showing Steamship Docks and Camden Ferries."  This location is the view from the
the Delaware River of the Washington Avenue waterfront, c. 1875.  This engraving depicts sailboats, steamboats, a steamship,  schooners, and even a rowboat, all with needs relating to the very busy wharves in the background.  Limited ferry service operated between Philadelphia and Camden at this location, but the Red Star Line and the American Line companies, whose docks are pictured to the right of the Pennsylvania Railroad terminal, were transatlantic steamship lines. Their ferries traveled chiefly out of European ports to Philadelphia and New York, carrying mail, cargo, and passengers--mostly immigrants.  Engraving for an unidentified publication, 19.5 x 12.5 cm, undated (but likely c. 1875).