Servant and Civil War Officer

I am always on the lookout for items pertaining to Green-Wood and/or its permanent residents. I look for such items online, at auction, in catalogues, and at shows. I came across this carte de visite photograph, taken during the Civil War, listed in a recent Cowan’s auction: And here’s the catalogue description: CDV of an … Read more

“VIEW FROM BATTLE HILL, GREEN-WOOD CEMETERY,” BY JAMES SMILLIE, 1847

The illustration pictured here, “View from Battle Hill, Green-Wood Cemetery,” was drawn and engraved by James Smillie (1807-1885) for Green-Wood historian Nehemiah Cleaveland’s 1847 guide, Green-Wood Illustrated. For the book, Smillie executed a series of engravings capturing the vast serene landscape of Green-Wood in its early years. At that time, before Central Park or Prospect Park were established, the beautiful hills and dells of the cemetery served as an ideal setting for a family day out.

STEREOVIEW OF THE ANGEL OF THE WATERS, BY EMMA STEBBINS, CENTRAL PARK, c. 1870’s

The Angel of the Waters (1873), commonly referred to simply as the Bethesda Fountain, was one of the first large-scale public sculptures by a female artist. Green-Wood resident Emma Stebbins (1815-1882) designed the sculpture for Bethesda Terrace in New York City’s Central Park. Unveiled in 1873, the sculpture depicts the biblical story of an angel who came upon the pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem, stirring the water and imbuing it with healing powers.

CABINET CARD OF CLEMENCE LOZIER, PHOTOGRAPHED BY NAPOLEON SARONY, c. 1880s

During the first half of the nineteenth century it was almost unheard of for a woman to practice medicine, but pioneering female doctor Clemence Lozier (1813-1888) played a major role in changing that. Not only did she excel in the fields of obstetrics and general surgery, she also encouraged other women to pursue medicine by founding the New York Medical College and Hospital for Women in 1863. Lozier further helped to make basic medical knowledge accessible to the average woman, hosting lectures in her own home and writing health books specifically for women.