View at Bush Point, Cayuga Lake, near Ithaca, N.Y. 1860 - 1865

J.C. Burritt created this stereograph, "View at Bush Point, Cayuga Lake, near Ithaca, N.Y.," capturing a serene waterfall scene. Stereographs like this one offered a form of virtual tourism during a time of rapid industrialization and westward expansion. As people were migrating and reshaping the landscape, there was a corresponding nostalgia for untouched nature. They capture this feeling of the sublime. These images were also a tool in shaping perceptions of American identity and land. They often romanticized landscapes, promoting an idea of untouched wilderness that frequently erased or ignored the presence and history of indigenous peoples. This constructed view of nature played a role in justifying expansionist policies and shaping a particular narrative of American progress and its relationship to the environment. There's a tension in this beautiful, calming image. It hints at both the allure of unspoiled nature and the complex historical narratives that shape how we see and understand our relationship to the land.