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Photo: Courtesy, American Antiquarian Society (inv. 374)
inv. 460
View of the Great Western & New-York Depot at South Cove, Boston
Lithograph Tinted on paper
7 1/4 x 12 3/16 in. (18.5 x 31 cm)
Sheet: 7 7/8 x 12 3/16 in. (20 x 31 cm)
F.H. Lane del.
C.Cook's Lithog. 32 Merchant's Exchng., Boston
Commentary

Lane designed this advertising print some time after 1840. It was printed by Charles Cook of Boston. At least one impression is a lithotint, in which a second stone printed a pale green tone over much of the image.

 

The image was used late on an advertising broadside for an express package and messenger service by the name of "Adams & Co.'s American Package Express." The company was started in Boston by Alvin Adams in 1840, and provided independent mail delivery, package shipping, and banking services in other cities. By late 1844, when this image appeared on the broadside, the firm had offices in eight East Coast cities; the following year it added an extension service to Europe and continued to expand for most of the nineteenth century.

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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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Boston Locales, Businesses, & Buildings: Adams' Express

For the history of this express package company, see Calvet Hahn's article.

artwork
Shop of William Adams & Co. at Cross and Fulton Streets
Unknown artist
oil on canvas
1830
The Bostonian Society (1887.0001.002)
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Charles Cook (1812–63) was a Boston engraver and lithographer from 1831–54. During his career he worked out of three locations, 81 Washington Street, 32 Merchants' Exchange, and Joy's building. Cook is thought to have specialized in maps and plans.

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

Provenance (Information known to date; research ongoing.)
See IMPRESSIONS tab for individual provenance.
Exhibition History
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. 374)).
Published References
Wilmerding 1963
Wilmderding, John. "The Lithographs of Fitz Hugh Lane." Old-Time New England LIV, no. 2 (October–December 1963), p. 33.
Hahn 1990
Calvet M. Hahn. "Adam's Express and Independent Mail." Carriers and Locals Society (1990), p.11, fig.4, as View of the Great Western & New-York Depot at South Cove, Boston.
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. 14, text, pp. 26, 28, as View of the Great Western & New-York Depot at South Cove, Boston (Impression: American Antiquarian Society (inv. 374)).
Impression Information

American Antiquarian Society (inv. 374)

View of the Great Western & New-York Depot at South Cove, Boston, n.d. (inv. 374)
Photo: Courtesy, American Antiquarian Society (inv. 374)
Printed under image from left to right: F.H. Lane del. C.Cook's Lithog. 32 Merchant's Exchng., Boston / VIEW of the GREAT WESTERN & NEW-YORK DEPOT at SOUTH COVE, BOSTON.

The Huntington Library (inv. 703)

Adams & Co's American Package Express, n.d. (inv. 703)
Photo: © Huntington Library, San Marino, CA (inv. 703)
Related Historical Materials

Boston Locales, Businesses, & Buildings

Lithography

Record last updated May 7, 2024. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: "View of the Great Western & New-York Depot at South Cove, Boston, n.d. (inv. 460)." In Fitz Henry Lane Online. Gloucester, MA: Cape Ann Museum. www.fitzhenrylaneonline.org/catalogue/entry.php?id=460 (accessed on August 24, 2025).