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Like any city, Hartford has undergone many changes in its 360+ year
history. For most of this time we relied on maps and graphic images
to document the people, places and events of Hartford. Through drawings
and paintings we get a sense of how Hartford looked before the advent
of photography in the mid-19th century. At that time some photographers
devised a way to create three-dimensional pictures called stereo views.
Since photographs could not yet be printed in newspapers, photographers
would take pictures of news events and exotic locales and sell them
individually. These stereo views became very popular as people began
to collect images of their hometowns, foreign countries, celebrities,
floods, fires, and even train wrecks.
The photographs shown here are mostly from the John Way Collection
of Stereo Views at the Old State House. While they will not appear
in 3-D on your computer screen, they will give you an idea of how
Hartford looked in the second half of the 19th century. Although
many things have been altered, and more than a few have disappeared,
some of our most revered landmarks still stand. Other photographs
on this website include some from the Dorothy Snow Collection, also
at the Old State House. The Snow Collection photographs were taken
by Dr. H.E. Snow, a Hartford dentist who opened his first office
on Pratt Street in 1903. These collections and others like them
were generously donated by supportive patrons of the Old State House.
Many of these photos can be found in the series, Hartford,
Hartford Vol. II,
Hartford Vol. III and Lost Hartford edited by Wilson
Faude, published by Arcadia Press. All royalties go to the Old State
House, Connecticut State Library and the Hartford Public Library.
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