New photography by Shannon Ruff captured with a digital camera-2007.

Niagara Falls

Artist Unknown

CultureUnknown

Datelate 1800s-early 1900s

MediumGelatin silver print

DimensionsOverall, Support: 10 x 12 in. (25.4 x 30.5 cm)
Overall, Image: 6 3/8 x 8 3/8 in. (16.2 x 21.3 cm)

Credit LineGift of Robert W. Lisle, M.D.

Object number91.111

Not on view

DescriptionThis is a gelatin silver print photograph.

Label Texttop Attributed to Platt D. Babbitt American, 1823–1879 A Honeymoon Couple, Niagara Falls, ca. 1860 Ambrotype (photograph) Gift of Dr. Robert W. Lisle, M.D. 91.102 bottom Niagara Falls, late 1800s–early 1900s Gelatin silver print (photograph) Gift of Robert W. Lisle, M.D. 91.111 Platt D. Babbitt’s photography studio faced Niagara Falls from the American pavilion, and he became fiercely defensive of the lucrative overlook nearby. As one Niagara visitor wrote, “Mr. Babbitt and his forces would stand between the camera and the falls swinging large-sized umbrellas to and fro thus preventing [other photographers] from getting a picture.” Because he lived at the site year-round, he also became known for remarkable winter views of the frozen falls and mammoth icicles—scenes rarely captured by other photographers. Exhibition History"New Light on Land: Photographs from the Chrysler Collection," Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA, January 28 - May 15, 2016.