Artwork Page for Sufferers from the Floods

Details / Information for Sufferers from the Floods

Series Title: Street Life in London

Sufferers from the Floods

1877

John Thomson

(Scottish, 1837–1921)
Culture
England, 19th century
Medium
woodburytype
Measurements
Image: 11.5 x 9 cm (4 1/2 x 3 9/16 in.); Paper: 11.5 x 9 cm (4 1/2 x 3 9/16 in.); Mounted: 27 x 20.7 cm (10 5/8 x 8 1/8 in.)
Credit Line
Photography Discretionary Fund 2019.52
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print
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Did You Know?

Annual tidal overflow of the Thames River flooded less prosperous areas of London, leaving behind “a trail of misery . . . and a damp, noxious, fever-breeding atmosphere.”

Description

Smith and Thomson decided to photograph the once-prosperous Rowletts in front of the rag shop that they owned and lived in to show that the floods caused long-term financial losses and health problems that drove even the middle class into poverty. The woman with the baby lived in the house next door; her entire family suffered constant colds and rheumatism from the persistent dampness.
A vertically oriented woodburytype photograph in muted brown tones depicts seven figures gathered before a worn shop exterior. On the left, a woman in a voluminous apron stands near a darkened doorway where two children appear. A boy in a cap and scarf stands centrally. To the right, a woman holds an infant next to a man in a hat holding a bottle. A lantern hangs above, and a sign on our left reads IRON.

Sufferers from the Floods

1877

John Thomson

(Scottish, 1837–1921)
England, 19th century

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