When I come across similar images in the online catalog, it’s hard not to stop and compare them. Sometimes we have multiple copies of an image printed from the same negative, other times we see photographs that were taken seconds apart or from a similar vantage point — and sometimes an image is modified from the original and produced in a new format.
The image below is a glass negative produced by the Detroit Publishing Company and registered for copyright protection in 1900. It shows a view of Mulberry Street in New York City at the turn of the twentieth century, in the heart of this neighborhood known for its Italian influence and immigrant community, and for its lively markets.
This photochrom, based on the above negative, from the Detroit Publishing Company Collection was produced by combining photographic and lithographic processes. The photographic image was transferred onto a printing surface, and color was applied through use of a separate lithographic stone for each hue.
Details such as clothing texture, facial features, and tracks in the dirt surface of the street are sharp in this cropped view from the scanned original negative:
While some details are no longer as clear in the photochrom, the color introduced through the lithographic process brings a new vibrancy to the image. This cropped view shows the dot pattern distinctive to lithographic prints:
Other views of Mulberry Street from Detroit Publishing Company Collection negatives provide additional perspectives on life and commerce in the area. Italian and English appear equally prominent in signage on shop windows and street signs.
Blurry figures, like the boy at bottom right and the man at left in this image, give a sense of the street’s kinetic energy. The crowds and plenty of wheeled conveyances in action in these images serve as further evidence of how lively this Manhattan neighborhood was at the turn of the twentieth century.
Learn More:
- Explore the Detroit Publishing Company Collection.
- Read about the photochrom process.
- See a recent Picture This a blog post that features photochrom prints: “Reflections on Photochroms.”
Comments (2)
One of my favorite books as a kid – now out of print – was Dr. Suess’s “To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street,” about both the child’s power of imagination and the adult power of squishing it. Thank you for putting the book into its real-life context. I can now imagine for myself the parade of life the book portrays.
Thank you for this wonderful overview of Detroit-comes-to-Mulberry-Street. On the techy side, it was interesting to see how some anomalies in the negative — bandage on the boy’s chin?? highlights on the hat or dirt on in the negative?? — carry through to the Photochrome. And then there is another mark on the Photochrome, this time on a cheek, that is not on the negative. No way to be sure, perhaps a slip-up on one of the lithographic elements at printing time. All fun to contemplate while eating our fresh clams!