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Artist/Maker
William E. Williams
(American, born 1950, Class of 1973)
Date1986, printed 2003
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsSheet: 9 15/16 × 8 in. (25.2 × 20.3 cm)
Image: 7 1/2 × 7 9/16 in. (19.1 × 19.2 cm)
Credit LineGift of William E. Williams, Class of 1973, in honor of Silvia Saunders, 2009
Object number2009.2.1
Not on view
DescriptionAbraham Brian (alt. Bryan) was a fugitive slave who purchased a twelve-acre farm in 1857. The site was used as a stop on the Underground Railroad and Brian successfully farmed the land until his property and buildings were destroyed during the battle at Gettysburg. Bullet holes from the battle can be seen in the upright corner of this photograph. The Brian farm and barn is located near the Alexander Dobbin House, another station on the Underground Railroad on Steinwehr Avenue. Both of these sites are within a short walking distance of Gettysburg National Cemetery and the stone marker locating the podium where Lincoln delivered his immortal Gettysburg Address. (SOURCE: Adair, et al., "Uncovering the Path to Freedom" exh. cat, p. 23)
Collections
Additional Details
Exhibition History
2011
Online exhibition ( http://www.hamilton.edu/emerson_gallery/upf/ ), UNCOVERING THE PATH TO FREEDOM: PHOTOGRAPHYS OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD BY WILLIAM EARLE WILLIAMS, '73, August 2008 - October 2011.
2006-08
Clinton, NY (Fred L. Emerson Gallery, Hamilton College). UNCOVERING THE PATH TO FREEDOM: PHOTOGRAPHYS OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD BY WILLIAM EARLE WILLIAMS '73, January 14 - April 13, 2008 (cat no. 1, illus.). Traveled from: Auburn, NY (Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center), April 26 - June 14, 2006.
Online exhibition ( http://www.hamilton.edu/emerson_gallery/upf/ ), UNCOVERING THE PATH TO FREEDOM: PHOTOGRAPHYS OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD BY WILLIAM EARLE WILLIAMS, '73, August 2008 - October 2011.
2006-08
Clinton, NY (Fred L. Emerson Gallery, Hamilton College). UNCOVERING THE PATH TO FREEDOM: PHOTOGRAPHYS OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD BY WILLIAM EARLE WILLIAMS '73, January 14 - April 13, 2008 (cat no. 1, illus.). Traveled from: Auburn, NY (Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center), April 26 - June 14, 2006.
Provenance
2009: Hamilton College (Fred L. Emerson Gallery), by gift of the artist.
Markings
Blind stamp: "PHOTOGRAPH / BY / WILLIAM EARLE WILLIAMS / COPYRIGHT" on recto at lower center of sheet.
Published References
UNCOVERING THE PATH TO FREEDOM: PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD BY WILLIAM EARLE WILLIAMS '73 (exhibition catalogue). Text by Katerina Adair; Ilana Carlin; Sophia Franck; Deborah Pokinski; and Susanna White. Clinton, NY: Emerson Gallery, Hamilton College, 2008. 23, illus., 16.
Signature
Not signed.
Inscribed
"Brian Barn Gettysburg 1986/ Gettysburg NMP Brian Barn 7.1.86 3/6 F16 8.17.03"; on verso along bottom edge in pencil; "1" on verso in lower right corner in pencil.
William E. Williams
Date: 2003–4 (printed 2007)
Medium: Gelatin silver print
Object number: 2008.5.3
William E. Williams
Date: 2001, printed 2003
Medium: Gelatin silver print
Object number: 2008.5.2
George Catlin
Date: published 1838
Medium: Lithograph with hand coloring
Object number: 1971.42
William E. Williams
Date: 2003 (printed 2007)
Medium: Gelatin silver print
Object number: 2008.5.4
William E. Williams
Date: 2004
Medium: Gelatin silver print
Object number: 2008.5.1
William Henry Jackson
Date: published 1899
Medium: Photochrome
Object number: 2006.3
William E. Williams
Date: 2004
Medium: Gelatin silver print
Object number: 2008.5.5
William E. Williams
Date: 1995 (printed 1997)
Medium: Gelatin silver print
Object number: 2008.6
C. Lavern Kelley
Date: 1987
Medium: White pine with enamel paint and plastic
Object number: 1989.22
Danny Lyon
Date: 1968 (printed 2011)
Medium: Gelatin silver print
Object number: 2014.7.26
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Date: published October 14, 1876
Medium: Wood engraving on newsprint
Object number: 2019.13.342