Ruins of the Old Fort, Conanicut, Rhode Island, after W. G. Wall, circa 1850

This is an original antique steel engraving, uncolored, lettered below the view "RUINS OF THE OLD FORT, CONNANICUT, RHODE ISLAND." (with the spelling CONNANICUT as engraved). The view shows the round stone walls of a fort crowning a steep headland above calm water, with rays of a low sun breaking behind it. In the foreground three men in a rowing boat haul in a net; at right a single masted sailing boat with a small boat alongside, and another sail in the distance below the far hills.

Above the view, the emblem vignette shows a soldier in an eighteenth century coat resting on a rocky hillock, his musket and hat beside him, with a village and church tower at left. Two small scenes are set into the lower corners of the scrolling border: at left figures on a shore waving their hats toward a fleet at anchor, captioned "ARRIVAL OF THE FRENCH OFF RHODE ISLAND. 1780."; at right officers seated at a table spread with papers under a hanging map, captioned "WASHINGTON HOLDS A COUNCIL OF WAR AT HARTFORD. 1780." The script credit under the lower left corner of the view reads "Drawn by W.G. Wall." The imprint reads "J. & F. TALLIS, LONDON & NEW YORK." The number 49 is engraved at the top right corner of the view.

The plate comes from History of the United States of America, edited by John Howard Hinton (1791 to 1873), the English Baptist minister and author, and published by J. and F. Tallis about 1850. J. and F. Tallis were London publishers of illustrated works sold in parts around the middle of the nineteenth century. The plates of this edition set a central steel engraved view inside an engraved ornamental border with small lettered vignettes of episodes from American history, as here. The credit names W. G. Wall, that is William Guy Wall, the Irish born painter of American landscapes. French forces under Rochambeau arrived at Newport, Rhode Island, in 1780.

The quiet water and evening light make a restful picture for a coastal room.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.