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Primary sourceNewspaper article1851

Reception of President Fillmore at the Boston and Roxbury Lines

Gleason's Pictorial · 1851

An 1851 newspaper engraving showing President Fillmore's public reception in Boston during a visit to a city hostile to the Fugitive Slave Act.

This image shows Fillmore as sitting president during a public visit to Boston amid opposition to the Fugitive Slave Act.

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Black-and-white wood engraving of a street scene: a horse-drawn carriage with a figure holding an umbrella, escorted by mounted riders in uniform, surrounded by a crowd, large trees and brick buildings. Caption reads: Reception of President Fillmore at the Boston and Roxbury Lines by the Municipal Authorities.
Gleason's Pictorial, Reception of President Fillmore at the Boston and Roxbury Lines, 1851.

About this source

What it is

This is a wood engraving published in Gleason's Pictorial in 1851. It depicts a street scene with a horse-drawn carriage escorted by mounted riders and surrounded by a crowd, captioned as the reception of President Fillmore by the municipal authorities of Boston.

Why it matters

Fillmore's presidency was marked by his support for the Fugitive Slave Act, which was deeply unpopular in many Northern cities, including Boston. This image shows him making a public appearance there, giving a glimpse of how his presidency intersected with growing sectional tensions over slavery.

Look closer

  • What does the crowd and official escort suggest about how the visit was managed?
  • Why might an illustrated newspaper choose to depict this particular event?
  • What tensions in the city does the image not show directly?

This newspaper article is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Millard Fillmore on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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