Existing comment:
Robert Salmon
Dismal Swamp Canal, 1830
Salmon's depiction of a steam-powered tourist boat navigating the Dismal Swamp Canal captures the Jacksonian era's confidence in technology and commerce. One of the great engineering feats of its day, the twenty-two-mile channel connected the intercoastal waterways of Virginia and North Carolina. In Salmon's scene, spectators watch from the Lake Drummond Hotel as the boat passes by. Straddling the state line, the notorious inn attracted eloping lovers and dueling foes who could sidestep the law by simply walking across the border.
The Boston-based painter did not travel south to capture the scene in person, but relied on an on-site sketch by Norfolk artist Thomas Williamson. The image, soon marketed as a print, became an icon of technological progress. It appeared in miniature form on paper currency of several states, often balanced with depictions of steam locomotives or factories. |