Printing House Square, 1868

What it is

This is a hand-colored lithograph titled Printing House Square 1868, by W. C. Rogers & Co. It shows a city square lined with multi-story newspaper buildings. Their signs include The Sun, The Daybook, The Tribune, The World, and Scientific American. An American flag flies from a rooftop, and pedestrians, horse-drawn carriages, a dog, and a tree fill the street. At the far right is the sign for The Revolution.

Why it matters

The Revolution was founded in 1868 by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony. The facts note that its location, 37 Park Row, is now part of the Women's Rights Historic Sites and is marked as the 'Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton Corner.' The print helps students see the setting where these two women put their campaign into print. It is a primary image made in the same year the paper began, so it shows the street as their contemporaries saw it.

Look closer

• What kinds of people and transport fill the street, and what does that tell you about daily life in 1868 New York?
• Why would a women's rights newspaper want its sign placed among these established papers?
• What does this view leave out about the people who worked inside these buildings?