HARPER’S WEEKLY — July 16, 1887, Coney Island Front Page • “Art and Nature at the West End of Coney Island” • Montgomery, Alabama Supplement

HARPER’S WEEKLY — July 16, 1887

Coney Island Front Page • “Art and Nature at the West End of Coney Island” • Montgomery, Alabama Supplement

Step back into the summer of 1887 with this complete, original issue of Harper’s Weekly, an iconic illustrated newspaper known for capturing America’s culture, travel, entertainment, and politics through exceptional engraved artwork.
This issue features Coney Island, Montgomery, Alabama, and a strong mix of Gilded Age social and regional art.


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🎡 Front Page: “Art and Nature at the West End of Coney Island”

A lively, humorous, and wonderfully detailed full-page engraving by F. T. Richards, depicting the chaos, color, and entertainment of late-19th-century Coney Island:

Merry-go-round scenes

Sideshows and carnival booths

“Wild Woman of the Catskills” exhibit

Lightning sketch artists

Comedic annotations throughout


This is one of the most display-worthy Coney Island prints Harper’s ever produced — perfect for collectors of New York history, amusement park ephemera, or Victorian popular culture.


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🏛️ Supplement: “Montgomery, Alabama” — Large, Frameable Southern City Views

This issue includes a fantastic multi-page Southern supplement featuring detailed engravings of Montgomery, Alabama, including:

• The Market (street view, horses, vendors, architecture)

• The Capitol

• Government Building

• Riverfront & steamers

• The Old Mansion

• The Fort Place

• Public Square & fountains

• The Citadel

These are beautifully rendered, highly frameable cityscapes—ideal for buyers with ties to Alabama, historians of the Reconstruction/Gilded Age South, or anyone seeking regional Americana.


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🚢 Inside the Issue — Additional Engravings & Features

Throughout the 16 pages you’ll also find:

Gilded Age society scenes

Humorous vignettes

Portraits of prominent figures

Harbor & travel views

Steamboats, ships, and coastal art

Period advertisements (cosmetics, appliances, medicine, books, clothing)


This is a rich, diverse issue with broad collecting and framing potential.


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🖼 CUSTOM ARCHIVAL FRAMING AVAILABLE

I offer museum-quality framing for any single or double-page engraving in this issue:

Acid-free matting

UV-protective acrylic

Multiple color/mat options

Perfect for home libraries, offices, coastal décor, amusement collectors, or Southern heritage displays


Great for gifts — especially for New Yorkers or Alabamians who love historical art.


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📏 SIZE

Each page approx. 16 × 11 inches

Centerfolds approx. 22 × 16 inches when opened

The Montgomery supplement includes full-page and double-page views ideal for framing



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✔️ CONDITION

Very Good for age.

Clean, supple pages

Light edge wear

Typical binding holes from removal from a bound volume

Perfect for both collecting and display



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🎯 APPEAL

• New York / Coney Island collectors

• Alabama / Southern history collectors

• Architecture & cityscape art buyers

• Gilded Age Americana enthusiasts

• Amusement park, carnival, and circus ephemera collectors

• Interior designers looking for frameable 19th-century art

• Gift buyers (birthplace, hometown, nostalgia)