22
●
HALL, GEORGE P. & SON
View of South Street, lower Manhattan, with clipper ships, ferry terminals and maritime workers
posing for the cameraman.Albumen print, 13
1
/
2
x16
1
/
4
inches (34.3x41.3 cm.), with Hall’s credit on
the original mount recto. 1880s
[2,000/3,000]
This remarkable scene depicts lower Manhattan as a hub of maritime and commercial activity, with
numerous sailing vessels and ships out-and-about in the harbor and hundreds of workers standing in
position. The laborers on the rooftop of the ferry terminal are posing for this photograph—as are the
carriagemen patiently standing alongside, or seated in, their horse-drawn wagons, and the scores of men
peaking out of doorways, who are ready to spring back into action once the camera’s shutter has clicked.
A stunning photograph commemorating a very busy NewYork kind of day.
