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City Watchman

1870s
Not on view
A watchman, armed with his stick and leather helmet, sets out on a snowy evening patrol from his Elizabeth Street sentry box. So-called leatherheads looked out for fires and criminal activity, such as break-ins and grave robberies. Before New York City established a professional police force in the 1840s, residents relied on a patchwork system of constables, marshals, and watchmen tasked with maintaining order in an increasingly unruly city. An inscription on the reverse of this image identifies the building to the right of the box as the Old Methodist Meeting House and those to the left as the homes of a cabinetmaker, a ward inspector, and a grocer.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: City Watchman
  • Artist: William P. Chappel (American, 1801–1878)
  • Date: 1870s
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Oil on slate paper
  • Dimensions: 6 1/8 x 9 1/8 in. (15.6 x 23.2 cm)
  • Credit Line: The Edward W. C. Arnold Collection of New York Prints, Maps, and Pictures, Bequest of Edward W. C. Arnold, 1954
  • Object Number: 54.90.500
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing

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Fighting a Fire, William P. Chappel American, Oil on slate paper, American
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Infant Funeral Procession, William P. Chappel American, Oil on slate paper, American
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