French Barbizon artists, who painted the rural landscape directly from nature. Charles Henry Miller's painterly study of High Bridge (c.1873, Walter and Lucille Rubin, not in exhibition) reflected these sensibilities, emphasizing the rural and picturesque character of the area; yet he also depicted the "traffic" along the Westchester 54 side. Miller developed the composition into a monumental canvas which he entered in the 1875 National Academy of Design exhibi- tion (figure 51). It was chosen for display in a prominent position and contributed in large part to his election as a full member; in 1876, his audience became international when the painting was displayed and awarded a medal at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia.^'' In its selection, one cannot help but speculate if the judges were attracted to its subject — the High Bridge had become one of the famed features of the New York landscape, and progress and technology were a highlight of the fair. This exposure and the painting's subsequent issuance as an etching probably made High Bridge from Harlem Lane the best known Aqueduct painting of this later period. Artists, writers, and the general public also associated the Croton water system with park-like public amenities in both the City and the countryside — in the fountains, reservoirs, the Dam and Lake, and High Bridge. In fact, the concept of great public works pro- jects in harmony with the landscape scenery precedes the Aqueduct in the Fairmount Waterworks at Philadelphia, begun in 1812. Thomas Doughty painted several views of the neo-classical buildings and their surroundings (figure 52), many of which were engraved by Cephus Childs around 1826. In his Views of Philadelphia, 1827-30, Childs summarized an arcadian view of technology: The situation of Fairmount is exceedingly picturesque .... It is a favorite resort of the citizens, and the view of it is highly interesting, blending as it does the beauty of nature with the ornaments of useful art, and the gaiety of animation of groups of well dressed people.^^ Similarly, as a public works project, the Aqueduct was appreciat- ed for its recreational possibilities. Tower predicted that "... every thing in connection seems to indicate that the vicinity of the Croton Dam will be one of the resorts in summer seasons for the citizens of New York. In addition to foreshadowing the appropriation of Westchester's countryside as parkland for city residents, he sug- gests the foreign visitor "... will be pleased with a pedestrian tour along the line of work to the Fountain reservoir .... Besides becoming acquainted with the important features of the work, he may enjoy much that is beautiful in American scenery ...he may see the majestic palisades . . . and the dark gorge where the Hudson emerges from the Highlands .... This country is interesting also from the associations with which it has been invested by the pen of our novelists In conjuring up every possible allusion to elements that added to the appreciation of landscape scenery, he went on to mention Washington Irving, the Dutch history of the area, and the capture of Major Andre. Of course, as Roger Panetta's essay makes clear, to farmers and landowners forced to cede property, this image of Westchester as a site of rural and recreational pleasures distorted the Aqueduct's impact. Still, tourists at Croton Lake constantly observed the "order and beauty" of the work at the Dam, according to Westchester historian Robert Bolton, Jr. in his 1848 text. While discussing the Aqueduct project only briefly, he nonetheless includes a sentimental poem "To Croton Lake," reprinted from the Hudson River Chronicle, about friends rowing on the man-made body of water (figure 2): figure 51: Charles Henry Miller, High Bridge from Harlem Lane, 1873, oil on canvas Courtesy Walter and Lucille Rubin Unruffled calm thy bosom lies Save 'where the oars the stillness break; Nor do the breezes dare to rise. To mar thy beauty, Croton Lake. . . . ^® High Bridge, whicli included a pedestrian wall<-way, was a less distant excursion for City residents. In an 1866 travel guide, The Hudson from the Wilderness to the Sea, Benson Lossing noted, "Pleasant roads on both sides of the Harlem lead to the High Bridge, where full entertainment for man and horse may be had. The 'High Bridge' is a place of great resort in pleasant weather for those who love the road and rural scenery." Even closer at hand, the Murray Hill Distributing Reservoir was, at least at first, a wel- come oasis for those who wanted to get away from more crowded areas of the City. Curher and Bornet both depicted the citizens on the parapet, from which one could admire the water inside, and the landscape view outside. Well before the end of the century, the disharmonious juxtaposi- tion of the geometric Receiving Reservoir