Pontoon Bridge, Across the Potomac, at Berlin, Maryland, November 1862
Medium
Albumen silver print from glass negative
Classification
Photographs
Department
Photographs
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Florance Waterbury Bequest, 1970
Accession Number
1970.537.12
Tags
Art Historical Context
Captured in November 1862 by pioneering photographer Alexander Gardner, *Pontoon Bridge, the Potomac, at Berlin Maryland* offers a stark glimpse into the American Civil War's logistical ingenuity. This albumen silver print, made from a glass negative, depicts a temporary pontoon bridge spanning Potomac River near Berlin (now Brunswick), Maryland—a critical crossing point for Union troops during campaigns following the Battle of Antietam. Pontoon bridges, assembled from boats and planks, symbolized the war's mobility, allowing armies to ford rivers swiftly amid grueling marches. Gardner, a Sco...
About the Artist
Alexander Gardner
Alexander Gardner was born on 17 October 1821 in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland, and came of age in a culture shaped by radical social thought. Influenced by the cooperative ideals of Robert Owen, Gardner initially apprenticed as a jeweler and harbored dreams of founding a utopian community in America. His encounter with photography changed the course of his life. After seeing Mathew Brady's cele...