1800s

Historic B&W photos of Brussels, Belgium in the 19th Century

Historic B&W photos of Brussels, Belgium in the 19th Century

In 1830, the Belgian revolution took place in Brussels after a performance of Auber’s opera La Muette de Portici at the La Monnaie theatre. Brussels became the capital and seat of government of the new nation. South Brabant was renamed simply Brabant, with Brussels as its capital. On 21 July 1831, Leopold I, the first King of the Belgians, ascended…
Vintage: Public Urinals in Paris by Charles Marville (19th Century)

Vintage: Public Urinals in Paris by Charles Marville (19th Century)

Charles Marville (1813 – 1879), was a French photographer, who mainly photographed architecture, landscapes and the urban environment. He used both paper and glass negatives. He is most well known for taking pictures of ancient Parisian quarters before they were destroyed and rebuilt under “Haussmannization”, Baron Haussmann’s new plan for modernization of Paris. In 1862, he was named official photographer…
Vintage: The Great Blizzard of 1888

Vintage: The Great Blizzard of 1888

The Great Blizzard of 1888 was one of the most severe recorded blizzards in the history of the United States of America. The storm began in earnest shortly after midnight on March 12, and continued unabated for a full day and a half. The National Weather Service estimated this Nor’easter dumped as much as 50 inches (130 cm) of snow…
Vintage B&W photos of Venice, Italy (19th century)

Vintage B&W photos of Venice, Italy (19th century)

In the late 19th century Venice flourished as a port and a manufacturing center. The railway reached Venice in 1846. However Venice did not prosper under Austrian rule. In 1848 revolutions swept Europe and Venice rose in rebellion against the Austrians. For a short period Daniele Manin became president of an independent Venice. However Austrian forces bombarded the city and…
Vintage: Sweden in 1880s and 1890s

Vintage: Sweden in 1880s and 1890s

Carl Curman (1833–1913) was a physician and a scientist. He is mainly known as a pioneer in his commitment in public health care, especially in bathing. He founded two public indoor baths in Stockholm and developed a minor outdoor bath in the fisherman village of Lysekil on the west coast into a high-society seaside resort. He was an associate professor…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Dutch Windmills in 19th Century

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Dutch Windmills in 19th Century

The first windmills were invented in antiquity, but it was the Dutch who really hit it off with this wooden giant. In a flat country, where the wind always blows, windmills sprouted from the ground like mushrooms. They were used to mill, saw, pump and press. The production of boards, paint, oil and paper, as well as bread and mustard…
Vintage Daguerreotype portraits from XIX Century (1844 – 1860)

Vintage Daguerreotype portraits from XIX Century (1844 – 1860)

Mathew B. Brady (1822 – 1896) was one of the first American photographers, who pioneered the daguerreotype technique in America. Brady opened his own studio in New York in 1844, and photographed Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams, among other celebrities. Here is a collection of mid 19th century Daguerreotypes produced by Mathew Brady’s studio (1844 – 1860).  From the…
Vintage: The Civil War

Vintage: The Civil War

Here is a collection of photographs covering the places of the Civil War: the battleships, prisons, hospitals, urban centers, and rural pastures where history was made. via The Atlantic
Vintage: Swedish churches from 1100-1900 AD

Vintage: Swedish churches from 1100-1900 AD

This set shows photos of Swedish churches from 1100-1900 AD – a mix of stone and wooden churches, cathedrals and chapels – country churches as well as city churches. We think that these pictures well describe the wide range of churches to be found all over the country in the 1800s. They also show the surrounding landscape or environment, often…
Vintage: The American West in the 19th Century

Vintage: The American West in the 19th Century

Timothy O’Sullivan (1840 – 1882) was official photographer on the United States Geological Exploration of the Fortieth Parallel under Clarence King. The expedition began at Virginia City, Nevada, where he photographed the mines, and worked eastward. His job was to photograph the West to attract settlers. In so doing, he became one of the pioneers in the field of geophotography.…
Historic B&W photos of Dublin, Ireland (19th century)

Historic B&W photos of Dublin, Ireland (19th century)

Dublin suffered a period of political and economic decline during the 19th century following the Act of Union of 1800, under which the seat of government was transferred to the Westminster Parliament in London. The city played no major role in the Industrial Revolution, but remained the centre of administration and a transport hub for most of the island. Ireland…
Historic B&W photos of Naples, Italy (19th century)

Historic B&W photos of Naples, Italy (19th century)

After the Expedition of the Thousand led by Giuseppe Garibaldi, which culminated in the controversial Siege of Gaeta, Naples became part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 as part of the Italian unification, ending the era of Bourbon rule. The kingdom of the Two Sicilies had been wealthy, and as many as 443.2 million ducats were taken from the…
Historic B&W photos of Rotterdam, Holland (19th century)

Historic B&W photos of Rotterdam, Holland (19th century)

The port of Rotterdam grew slowly but steadily into a port of importance. The greatest spurt of growth, both in port activity and population, followed the completion of the Nieuwe Waterweg in 1872. The city and harbor started to expand on the south bank of the river. The Witte Huis or White House skyscraper, inspired by American office buildings and…
World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893

World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893

The World’s Columbian Exposition was a World’s Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’s arrival in the New World in 1492. The Exposition was an influential social and cultural event and had a profound effect on architecture, sanitation, the arts, Chicago’s self-image, and American industrial optimism. Most of the buildings of the fair…
Vintage: Altstadt, Dresden, Saxony, Germany in the late 19th Century

Vintage: Altstadt, Dresden, Saxony, Germany in the late 19th Century

The city of Dresden had a distinctive silhouette, captured in famous paintings by Bernardo Bellotto and by Norwegian painter Johan Christian Dahl. Between 1806 and 1918 the city was the capital of the Kingdom of Saxony (which was a part of the German Empire from 1871). During the Napoleonic Wars the French emperor made it a base of operations, winning…