James Reuel Smith (1852–1935) was an American photographer and amateur historian who worked in the
late 19th century to early 20th century. He was known for his
documentary photographs of historical
springs and
wells
Wells most commonly refers to:
* Wells, Somerset, a cathedral city in Somerset, England
* Well, an excavation or structure created in the ground
* Wells (name)
Wells may also refer to:
Places Canada
*Wells, British Columbia
England
* Wells ...
in New York City before they were buried beneath the concrete of the rapidly growing city.
Many of these natural
water resources
Water resources are natural resources of water that are potentially useful for humans, for example as a source of drinking water supply or irrigation water. 97% of the water on the Earth is salt water and only three percent is fresh water; slight ...
disappeared as the
New York municipal water system developed.
Smith's photographs documented a vanishing way of life in
urban America. Drawing and fetching water had been an essential activity of daily life prior to the development of the modern municipal water system.
In the 1870s New York City undertook efforts to eradicate the natural open wells and springs as they were perceived to be hazardous to health. The official municipal source for city water was the
Croton Aqueduct
The Croton Aqueduct or Old Croton Aqueduct was a large and complex water distribution system constructed for New York City between 1837 and 1842. The great aqueducts, which were among the first in the United States, carried water by gravity from ...
which was endorsed by the NYC sanitation officers, rather than local neighborhood wells and springs.
Early life
Smith was born in
Skaneateles, New York
Skaneateles ( , ) is a town in Onondaga County, New York, United States. The population was 7,112 at the 2020 census. The name is from the Iroquois term for the adjacent ''Skaneateles'' Lake, which means "long lake." The town is on the western ...
, in 1852.
He was the elder of two sons.
His mother, Celestia A. Mills, died five years after marrying his father, Reuel Smith, who was known as "Little Smith". His father remarried, and Smith was sent to live at a cousin's home.
His father was a partner in the Smith & Mills shipping firm, and made his fortune shipping rice, sugar and cotton to England.
Work
Smith's family money allowed him to actively engage in photography as a hobby. The primary subjects of his photographs were the springs and wells of New York City. Between 1897 and 1901 he traveled by bicycle throughout Manhattan and the Bronx investigating and photographing over 160 wells and springs.
He was a meticulous note-taker, and kept detailed records of the conditions and locations of these historical water resources.
The New York Historical Society wrote on its collection of Smith's photographs, "Springs were very important to Mr. Smith. He made careful notes regarding each aquiferous site, and he always had in mind the publication of his findings."
Smith also produced a small collection of photographs of wells in Brooklyn.
Smith's photographs were a contribution to the
visual culture
Visual culture is the aspect of culture expressed in visual images. Many academic fields study this subject, including cultural studies, art history, critical theory, philosophy, media studies, Deaf Studies, and anthropology.
The field of ...
of New York City as they documented a vanishing way of life in
urban America. The daily act of drawing and fetching water had been an essential activity of life before the development of the
modern municipal water system.
During the 1870s the city embarked on efforts to eradicate the historical open wells and springs as these natural sources of water were seen as a health hazard by NYC sanitation officers. The
Croton Aqueduct
The Croton Aqueduct or Old Croton Aqueduct was a large and complex water distribution system constructed for New York City between 1837 and 1842. The great aqueducts, which were among the first in the United States, carried water by gravity from ...
fed by the Croton-Hudson Reservoir was at that time the official municipal source for city water.
Smith later traveled to Europe to photograph springs and wells, an activity that led to his book, ''Springs and Wells in Greek and Roman Literature, Their Legends and Locations'' (1922).
The book covered various regions in Italy and Greece including Peloponnesus, Central Greece, Magna Graecia, Greek Islands and Asia Minor, as well as other countriesEurope, Africa and the Middle East.
Smith's photographic work on New York's natural water resources was not made public until after his death, and his book, ''Springs and Wells of Manhattan and the Bronx, New York City at the End of the 19th Century'' was published posthumously in 1938.
However Smith wrote the introduction to his book before his death,
including "In the days, not so very long ago, when nearly all the railroad mileage of the metropolis was to be found on the lower half of the Island, nothing was more cheering to the thirsty city tourist afoot or awheel than to discover a natural spring of clear cold water, and nothing quite so refreshing as a draught of it."
Smith also published technical articles on photography.
Personal life
![SkanGothicRH800](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/SkanGothicRH800.jpg)
Smith married Elizabeth Thompson in 1882; the couple had no children.
After his father died in 1873, Smith's younger brother,
Edmund Reuel Smith (known as "E.R.") inherited the family summer home, the
Reuel E. Smith House in Skaneateles, New York.
Smith died at his home at 14 Philipse Place in
Yonkers, New York
Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City and Buffalo. The population of Yonkers was 211,569 as enu ...
, on November 12, 1935.
Collections
His work is in the permanent collection of the
New York Historical Society
The New-York Historical Society is an American history museum and library in New York City, along Central Park West between 76th and 77th Streets, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The society was founded in 1804 as New York's first museum. ...
.
The James Reuel Smith Springs and Wells Photograph Collection consists of 17 boxes of materials, including seven boxes of glass negatives as well as acetate negatives.
His work is also held in the
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...
.
Legacy
Smith died with an estate worth $328,383 net in 1938 dollars ($6 million in 2021 dollars). Of this, he bequeathed 20 shares (approximately $100,000 in 1938 dollars) to the U.S. government. The remaining shares were given to those he named as heirs including: the
American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History (abbreviated as AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. In Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 26 inter ...
; the New York Children's Aid Society; Children's Village Inc. of
Dobbs Ferry
Dobbs Ferry is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 10,875 according to the 2010 United States Census. In 2019, its population rose to an estimated 11,027. The village of Dobbs Ferry is located in, and is a p ...
; Bide-a-Wee Home Association, a
"no kill" animal shelter and pet cemetery among other causes.
Contemporary artists' responses
The works of James Reuel Smith have inspired several contemporary artists who have made works in response to Smith's photographic projects. Jimbo Blachly created a site-specific installation in 2003, ''About 86 Springs'', at
SculptureCenter
SculptureCenter is a not-for-profit, contemporary art museum located in Long Island City, Queens, New York City. It was founded in 1928 as "The Clay Club" by Dorothea Denslow. In 2013, SculptureCentre attracted around 13,000 visitors.
History
Fou ...
in
Long Island City
Long Island City (LIC) is a residential and commercial neighborhood on the extreme western tip of Queens, a borough in New York City. It is bordered by Astoria to the north; the East River to the west; New Calvary Cemetery in Sunnyside to the ...
, New York.
Infrastructure photographer Stanley Greenberg embarked on a project
rephotographing all of the well and spring sites in Manhattan and the Bronx. These were published in his 2021 book, ''Springs and Wells – Manhattan and the Bronx: Stanley Greenberg''.
Gallery
File:A Woman Drinks at the Carmen Spring - James Reuel Smith.jpg, ''A Woman Drinks at the Carmen Spring, on West 175th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, New York City'', by James Reuel Smith, C. 1897-1902
File:Man drinks at spring in Central Park - James Reuel Smith.jpg, ''Unidentified man drinking from the spring at W. 110th Street, Central Park, 50 feet west of Seventh Avenue, New York City, October 16, 1897''
File:Girl drinking from a spring in Central Park - James Reuel Smith.jpg, ''Unidentified girl drinking at Montaigne's Spring, McGown's Pass, Central Park, New York City, July 23, 1898''
File:Girl at Well Pump, NYC - James Reuel Smith.jpg, ''Unidentified girl at the water pump at the rear of 65 E. 87th Street, north side between Madison and Park, New York City, April 21, 1898''
File:Boy at Spring in NYC - James Reuel Smith.jpg, ''Unidentified boy at a spring on the northeast corner of Riverside Drive and W. 91st Street, New York City, April 2, 1898''
File:Haven Lane Spring (Buckman's Well) NYC.jpg, ''Haven Lane Spring (Buckman's well) between W. 181st and W. 182nd Streets, Northern Avenue and Riverside Drive, New York City, May 31, 1898''
File:Unidentified boy using Weissbein's roadhouse pump well, Caton Street, Brooklyn, New York City, November 1, 1898.jpg, ''Unidentified boy using Weissbein's roadhouse pump well, Caton Street, Brooklyn, New York City, November 1, 1898''
References
External links
Drink Deep! A Look at Turn-of-the-20th-Century New York's Lost Natural SpringsSprings and Wells in Greek and Roman Literature: Their Legends and LocationsNew York Heritage Digital Collection of Photographs by James Reuel SmithJames Reuel Smith "Springs and Wells" Photographs and Papersat
New York Historical Society
The New-York Historical Society is an American history museum and library in New York City, along Central Park West between 76th and 77th Streets, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The society was founded in 1804 as New York's first museum. ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, James Reuel
American photographers
19th-century photographers
20th-century photographers
1852 births
1935 deaths
People from Skaneateles, New York
Historians from New York (state)
Social documentary photographers
19th-century American people
20th-century American people