Catalogue Entry

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Photo: Courtesy, American Antiquarian Society (inv. 365)

inv. 456

Millbury Village

Lithograph on paper

12 3/16 x 16 15/16 in. (31 x 43 cm)

Drawn by F.H. Lane
Moore's Lithography, Boston, Successor to Pendleton

American Antiquarian Society (inv. 365)American Antiquarian Society (inv. 365)
Boston Athenaeum (inv. 515)Boston Athenaeum (inv. 515)

Commentary

This view of the landscape south of Worcester, Massachusetts, and the related view Burbankville to Blackstone River, n.d. (inv. 457), were sketched by Fitz Henry Lane and published in 1836 or 1837, not long after Thomas Moore acquired the printing firm from William S. Pendleton. The prints show Millbury and the village of Burbankville. Located in the Blackstone River Valley, both areas enjoyed a period of growth during the 1830s as textile and other manufactories flourished.

Although these two prints depict distinct communities, they are more typical of landscapes than town views as the built environments do not dominate the composition. In fact, the inclusion of cows in the foregrounds and the extraordinary attention to detail in the shrubs, flowers and stone walls suggests that Lane was pondering the implications of the shifting economy as residents of the area transitioned away from an agrarian way of life to a more urban one.

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Subject Types:
- Landscape »
- Townscape »
Landscape Types:
- Farm / Buildingscape »
- Field / Meadow »
Animals & People:
- Livestock (horse / sheep / cow) »
Activities of People:
- Farming »

Historical Materials

Below is historical information related to the Lane work above. To see complete information on a subject on the Historical Materials page, click on the subject name (in bold and underlined).

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Lithography: Moore's, T. - Lith. - Boston

English-born Thomas Moore was the successor to William S. Pendleton's lithography shop in 1836. Prior to this changing of hands, Moore worked in Pendleton's shop for years as a clerk and bookkeeper. During his four years (1836-40) at Pendleton's 204 Washington Street address, he had under his employ many famous artists, including F.H. Lane, Robert Cooke, and Benjamin Champney. Moore's Lithography printed the usual variety of work, including portraits, town views, public institutions, maps, plans, certificates, cards, etc. In 1840, Moore sold his Boston shop to B. W. Thayer, ending his lithographic career in Boston.

This information has been summarized from Boston Lithography 1825-1880 by Sally Pierce and Catharina Slautterback.

publication

Mammoth Cod Quickstep

Unknown

1839
T. Moore's Lithography, Boston
12 1/2 x 9 1/2 in.
20 x 16 3/4 in (Framed)
Cape Ann Museum, Museum Purchase (2014.089.2)

Also filed under: Cod / Cod Fishing » // Johnston, David Claypoole » // Sheet Music by other artists »

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Provenance (Information known to date; research ongoing.)

See IMPRESSIONS tab for individual provenance.

Exhibition History

1976 Worcester Museum

Worcester Art Museum, Worcester, Massachusetts, New England Prints Before 1850, April 7–May 16, 1976. (Impression: American Antiquarian Society (inv. 365)).

2017–18 Cape Ann Museum

Cape Ann Museum, Gloucester, Massachusetts, Drawn From Nature & on Stone: The Lithographs of Fitz Henry Lane, October 7, 2017–March 4, 2018. (Exhibition catalogue: Cape Ann Museum 2017) (Impression: American Antiquarian Society (inv. 365)).

Published References

Wilmerding 1963

Wilmderding, John. "The Lithographs of Fitz Hugh Lane." Old-Time New England LIV, no. 2 (October–December 1963), p. 33.

Reps 1984

Reps, John W. Views and Viewmakers of Urban America: Lithographs of Towns and Cities in the United States and Canada, Notes on the Artists and Publishers, and a Union Catalog of their Work,1825-1925. Columbia: University of Missouri Press, no. 1538, p.338.

Crossman 1985

Crossman, Carl L. "Lithographs of Fitz Hugh Lane." In American Maritime Prints, edited by Elton W. Hall. New Bedford, MA: The Whaling Museum by the Old Dartmouth Historical Society, 1987, p. 76, 79, fig.8 p.78 (Impression: American Antiquarian Society (inv. 365)).

Cape Ann Museum 2017

Barnhill, Trafton. Drawn from Nature & on Stone: the Lithographs of Fitz Henry Lane. Gloucester, MA: Cape Ann Museum, 2017. Exhibition catalogue (2017–18 Cape Ann Museum), fig. 32, text, pp. 14-15, as Millbury Village (Impression: American Antiquarian Society (inv. 365)).

Impression Information

American Antiquarian Society (inv. 365)

Photo: Courtesy, American Antiquarian Society (inv. 365)

Printed under image from left to right: Drawn by F.H. Lane Moore's Lithography, Boston. / MILLBURY VILLAGE.

American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Mass. (152447)

Provenance

American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Mass.

Boston Athenaeum (inv. 515)

Printed under image left to right: Drawn by F.H. Lane, Moore's Lithography, Boston

Boston Athenaeum

Provenance

Boston Athenaeum

Related Historical Materials

Lithography

Moore's, T. - Lith. - Boston

Record last updated May 7, 2024. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.

Citation: "Millbury Village, n.d. (inv. 456)." In Fitz Henry Lane Online. Gloucester, MA: Cape Ann Museum. www.fitzhenrylaneonline.org/catalogue/entry.php?id=456 (accessed on August 7, 2025).