City of Savannah, Georgia, Commemorative 100 Years 1776-1876
Date1876
Mediumlithograph on paper
DimensionsSight: 10 1/2 × 8 1/2 inches (26.7 × 21.6 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase.
Object number1941.11
CopyrightThe images and text contained on this page are owned by Telfair Museums or used by the Museum with permission from the owners. Unauthorized reproduction, transmission or display of these materials is prohibited with the exception of items deemed “fair use” as defined by U.S. and international copyright laws.Label TextIn 1876, a little over a decade after the end of the American Civil War (1861–1865), the United States celebrated the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence with the International Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia. Local printer H.J. Toudy & Company published a series of William Brotherhead’s birds’ eye views of port cities to represent the original British colonies, including this one of Savannah. Specific buildings and monuments are visible. However, the long horizon filled with buildings implies the city’s growth over the past century. Elements that appear on multiple city views, especially tiny figures and ships, show the common ties of production and commerce that bind American states together. However, the Black individuals at the bottom of the sheet hint at issues that the Civil War had not resolved. They load cotton into barrels and drive a cargo wagon, filling the same stereotypical roles they had before Emancipation. Brotherhead’s design reveals the ongoing limitations placed on African Americans even in the wake of the Civil War.
Text written by Dr. Elyse D. Gerstenecker, director of curatorial affairs & curator of decorative arts, for "Divided Loyalties: Stories of the American Revolution," on view at Telfair's Jepson Center from July 24, 2026 to February 28, 2027.
