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1920s Boston Waterfront Northern Ave Bridge Custom House Glass Negative OOAK
Original, one-of-a-kind (OOAK) institutional-grade camera-original antique gelatin silver press field glass negative captured circa 1920s: a breathtaking panoramic visual document of Boston’s maritime and architectural heritage: a high-vantage view overlooking the Northern Avenue Swing Bridge and Fort Point Channel toward the Atlantic Avenue wharves, crowned by the Custom House Tower and coastal steamships.
Preserved in its original vintage tan kraft darkroom morgue filing envelope bearing contemporary newsroom manuscript:
Historical & Archival Significance:
Engineered to handle the immense maritime and rail commerce between downtown Boston and the expanding South Boston industrial waterfront, the 1908 Northern Avenue Bridge was one of the most vital steel swing trusses in New England.
Captured directly in-camera on heavy press glass plate from an elevated rooftop perch in Fort Point, this exposure provides an intricate, razor-sharp time capsule of the interwar Boston harborfront:
The Northern Avenue Bridge: Complete broadside rendering of the heavy steel through-truss swing mechanism spanning the channel, showing the stone/timber center pivot pier, overhead clearance bracing, and the bridge tender's control house.
Skyline & Civic Architecture: The iconic pyramid-topped spire of the Custom House Tower anchors the upper left skyline, standing above historic multi-story brick mercantile warehouses, commercial cold storage buildings, and factory stacks along Atlantic Avenue.
Working Maritime Fleet: A massive coastal passenger and freight steamer rests berthed along the Atlantic Avenue wharf, with harbor steam tugs, lighters, and wooden barges navigating the slips.
Waterfront Street Life: In the immediate foreground, railroad tracks, timber wharf retaining cribbing, and an antique commercial delivery truck sit parked on the apron.
Tonal Fidelity: Rich continuous-tone silver gelatin density resolving water ripple reflections in Fort Point Channel, structural bridge lattice riveted trusses, architectural brick coursing, and window mullions.
Specifications:
Format: Heavy antique silver gelatin press glass negative, exposed directly in-camera circa 1920s.
Archive Ephemera: Accompanied by the original period tan kraft darkroom morgue filing envelope.
Please Note: This listing is for the physical antique glass negative and its original paper archive envelope only. Positive photographic images shown in this listing are modern inverted digital scans provided solely as a visual reference to illustrate image detail. No physical paper prints or modern reproductions are included.
Condition:
Very Good to Excellent antique condition. The heavy glass plate is structurally sound, stable, and completely intact with no cracks, breaks, fractures, or chips through the glass body. The silver gelatin emulsion is remarkably clean, sharp, and firmly adhered, retaining crisp definition across the bridge framework, city buildings, water, and skyline. Authentic unexposed handling borders remain preserved along the outer glass rebate margins. Complete with its original period kraft morgue filing envelope.
The glass plate negative measures 4 x 5In.
If you collect glass negatives, please check out our collection in our store. We are currently listing thousands of original glass photo negatives from this DJD collection through the remainder of the year. Follow our store, and feel free to reach out about any questions about the negatives in this collection.
Ships with extreme care in archival materials to ensure safe transit. Feel free to reach out with any requests or questions).
Combined shipping is available (with other glass negatives)
