A view of Silver Lake and the Roslyn Grist Mill looking north. The chimneys of the Pine-Onderdonk-Bogart House can be seen in the background. Circa 1865.
This photo of Silver Lake was taken from the backyard of Henry Western Eastman House at 75 Main Street dated 1870. A close-up shows the Roslyn Grist Mill with a very narrow Mill Dam Road. A two-mast schooner was docked behind the mill.
This photo was taken by civil engineer George Bradford Brainerd in 1879. Brainerd (1845-1887) was considered the pioneer of amateur photography. He took over 2,500 photographs, primarily of Brooklyn but also of Long Island and Connecticut.
Many of his images can be viewed on the Brooklyn Museum website. Photo courtesy of the Brooklyn Museum.
As noted by Terry Hunt, the negative was printed in reverse.
George Bradford Brainerd (American, 1845-1887). Mill, Roslyn, Long Island, 1879. Collodion silver glass wet plate negative Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Museum/Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn Collection, 1996.164.2-238 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 1996.164.2-238_print.jpg)
IMAGE overall, 1996.164.2-238_print.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
Other early photos of the Roslyn Grist Mill (circa 1880-1900)
4 Comments
Great early photographs of the Roslyn Mill. It suggests the shape and size of the building varied during the 19th Century. It would be interesting to overlay the shape of the building today with one of those from the past. Thank you
Bob, great suggestion! Howard
Any idea of the camera model the photographer might have been using here???
Vanessa, apparently Brainerd made his own cameras: http://www.jordanliles.com/george/facts
Terry, great catch! Indeed, the negative was printed in reverse. I have added two other early photos of the Roslyn Grist Mill. Howard
This is the earliest known photo of the mill, but the images shown here are reversed. Looking from the harbor, the additions were to the right of the original structure.