The Winterthur Library

The Joseph Downs Collection of Manuscripts and Printed Ephemera

Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum

5105 Kennett Pike, Winterthur, DE 19735

302-888-4600 or 800-448-3883

OVERVIEW OF THE COLLECTION

Creator: Altmaier, Carl Lewis

Title: Lantern slides

Dates: ca.1880-ca.1944

Call No.: Col. 787

Acc. No.: 06x78

Quantity: 171 items

Location: 40 A 5

BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENT

Carl Lewis Altmaier was a professor at Drexel Institute. He was born in August 1866 to Peter A. and Verona Altmaier. Peter A. Altmaier was a gunsmith in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and had several patents issued to him. Carl Lewis married Mary Eyre Fielding (1869-1944), had at least two sons (Carl Lewis and Ellwood F.), lived in Lansdowne, Penn., died in 1948, and is buried in Arlington Cemetery in Drexel Hill. He wrote several books, including Commercial Correspondence and Postal Information and Model Typewriting Instructor. He studied law and was a professor at Drexel Institute (now Drexel University) from 1893-1936.

Casper Warren Briggs made lantern slides and magic lanterns in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was born in Norton, Massachusetts, the son of Dr. Daniel H. Briggs. In 1872, they bought the magic lantern business of Frederick Langenheim. Casper Briggs developed the “slip slide,” which imparted horizontal movement to lantern slides, now acknowledged as a development in the making of motion pictures. However, he resisted lures to get involved in the emerging movie business and died in New Jersey in 1942, age 95. The illustrator Joseph Boggs Beale, also of Philadelphia, did many drawings for Briggs’ lantern slides, but it is not known if he created the Napoleon slides in this set.

SCOPE AND CONTENT

A group of lantern slides which illustrate Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, scenes from the French Revolution, and scenes from the life of Napoleon Bonaparte. The Dickens set is actually entitled “Marley’s Ghost,” probably an attempt to avoid copyright infringement. Each slide is numbered and has a caption, and some slides are missing. A Napoleon slide set, with numbers and printed labels, are the illustrations for a printed script about him. A handwritten note on the script records that it was written by C.L.A., and the slides were printed by Casper Briggs of Philadelphia. (Some slides are missing from this set as well.) Another set of slides about Napoleon is in wooden mounts; the pictures are in color. Slides illustrating the life of Napoleon and scenes from the French Revolution round out the collection.

In addition to the lantern slide show script, the collection also includes several papers about Napoleon, all written by Altmaier. A newspaper reproduction of one of Napoleon’s battles is found as well.

ORGANIZATION

The slides are divided into groups: “Marley’s Ghost”; French history (mostly Revolution); numbered slides about Napoleon; slides with printed labels; slides with handwritten labels; slides initialed as belonging to C.L.A.; other slides; slides in wooden mounts. Within each group of the historical slides, an attempt was made to arrange the events depicted in chronological order, although the results may not be perfect.

PROVENANCE

Found in stacks; not known when or from where acquired, but possibly transferred from Slide Library. They were probably a gift of Mr. and Mrs. Ellwood F. Altmaier.

RESTRICTIONS ON ACCESS

Broken lantern slides are not to be removed from protective sleeves except by a staff member.

ACCESS POINTS

People:

Briggs, Casper.

Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1769-1821.

Dickens, Charles, 1812-1870. Christmas Carol - Illustrations.

Topics:

Napoleonic wars, 1800-1815.

Illustration of books.

Christmas stories.

France – History – 1789-1815.

France – History – Revolution, 1789-1799.

Lantern slides.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION

Location: 40 A 5

Note: all accession numbers begin with 06x78

Box 1: Marley’s Ghost; French History; numbered Napoleon series

Marley’s Ghost (.1-.22):

.1 1. Scrooge’s office

.2 2. Doorway of Scrooge’s house

.3 3. effect – Marley’s face [on doorknocker]

.4 4. Scrooge’s sitting room

.5 5. effect – Marley’s ghost

.6 7. effect – Christmas past

.7 8. The school-room

.8 9. effect – Ali Baba

.9 10. effect – Robinson Crusoe

.10 11. Fezziwig’s ball

.11 12. Scrooge’s first love

.12 13. Husband, wife, daughter

.13 14. Christmas present

.14 15. Bob Cratchit’s home

.15 16. Miner’s cottage

.16 17. Nephew’s house

.17 19. effect – Christmas future

.18 20. On ‘change

.19 21. Marine store dealers

.20 22. Interior of Cratchit’s house

.21 23. The churchyard

.22 25. Interior of nephew’s house

French History (.23-.42):

.23 Louis XVI at forge, 1788

.24 Marie Antoinette at Petit Trianon, 1788

.25 Marie Antoinette and three children, 1789

.26 Assembly of the States-General, 1789 [May 5, 1789]

.27 Oath of the Tennis Court, 1789 [June 20, 1789]

.28 National Assembly, 1789

.29 Fall of Bastille, 1789 [July 14, 1789]

.30 Louis XVI during attack on Versailles [October 6, 1789]

.31 Mob returns from Versailles with king [October 1789]

.32 Mirabeau’s reply to king’s deputy

.33 arrest of Louis XVI at Varennes [June 21, 1791]

.34-.35 last interview of Louis XVI and family, 1793 [Louis was executed on January 21, 1793]

.36 Fete of Reason, 1793

.37 assassination of Marat, 1793 [July 13, 1793]

.38 arrest of Robespierre, 1794 [July 27]

.39 Napoleon examining mummies, 1799

.40 Napoleon presenting eagles to army

.41 Napoleon leaving Fontainebleau, 1814 [abdication was April 11, 1814]

.42 Napoleon dictating his memoirs [1815-1821]

numbered Napoleon series (.43-.55; for script see 06x78.165-.166):

.43 2- Napoleon at Brienne: snow-balling [Napoleon entered school here in 1779]

.44 4- Napoleon putting down the mob [perhaps October 4, 1795]

.45 5- Napoleon at Bassano [1796]

.46 6- Napoleon’s clemency to the sentinel

.47 7- Napoleon at the Bridge of Arcola [1796]

.48 8- Napoleon at Battle of Rivoli [1797]

.49 9- French army enters Venice

.50 11- Battle of the Nile [1798]

.51 12- Napoleon in Pest House, Jaffa [1798-1799]

.52 15- Napoleon and guide on Alps [1800]

.53 19- Napoleon urging the Pope to sign the Concordat [1802]

.54 20- Death of Duke d’Enghein [sic; i.e. Louis Antoine Henri de Bourbon Condé, duc d’Enghien, executed in March 1804]

.55 22- surrender of Ulm [October 19, 1805]

Box 2: numbered Napoleon series; slides with printed labels; French Revolution and Napoleon slides with handwritten labels

numbered Napoleon series (.56-.78):

.56 24- Napoleon visiting the tomb of Frederick the Great [ca.1806]

.57 26- Battle of Eylau [February 8, 1807]

.58 28- Napoleon meeting with the Czar [1807]

.59 29- Napoleon’s interview with Queen Louisa [of Prussia; June 28, 1807]

.60 30- Napoleon at Sommo-Sierra, 1808

.61 32- Defense of Saragossa [Spain, 1808-1809]

.62 34- Napoleon showing the new-born King of Rome to soldiers [1811]

.63 35- Napoleon receiving the portrait of his son, 1812

.64 36- Battle of Moskwa [September 4, 1812]

.65 39- breaking down of bridge at Beresina [November 1812]

.66 40- Napoleon’s return to Paris from Russia [December 1812]

.67 42- Battle of Leipsic [September 1813]

.68 43- Napoleon parting with his son

.69 44- Napoleon at the Battle of Arcis [Arcis-sur-Aube, France, March 20, 1814]

.70 48- abdication of Napoleon [April 1814]

71 49- the parting of Fontainebleau

.72 50- Napoleon at Elba [May 1814-February 1815]

.73 51- the return from Elba [March 1815]

.74 52- Congress at Vienna

.75 54- Waterloo. “Old Guard Dies, but never surrenders.” [June 18, 1815]

.76 56- Napoleon at St. Helena [after October 15, 1815]

.77 57- Napoleon seated on rock at St. Helena

.78 60- return of body of Napoleon to Paris [1840]

slides with printed labels (.79-.91):

.79 Assault on the Bastille, 1789

.80 Battle with the Mamelukes [Egypt, July 21, 1798]

.81 “Forty centuries looked down upon him.” [Napoleon at the pyramids, July 1798]

.82 Napoleon at Cairo. From painting by Levy, copyright 1894 by Boussod, Valadon & Co., New York

.83 Napoleon wounded at Ratisbonne [Regensburg, April or May 1809]

.84 Napoleon soluting wounded at Wagram [battle was on July 5-6, 1809]

.85 marriage of Napoleon to Marie Louise, 1810

.86 “The Retreat from Russia” – from painting by W. Werestchagin, copyright 1897 by Photographische Gesellschaft, by permission of Berlin Photographic Co., New York

.87 Marshal Ney on retreat from Russia [late 1812]

.88 The last call to arms, 1815

.89 “Napoleon’s Last Great Attack – Waterloo, 1815,” from painting by Crofts, copyright 1895 by Photographische Gesellschaft, by permission of Berlin Photographic Co., New York

.90 Napoleon’s flight from Waterloo [battle fought on June 18, 1815]

.91 Napoleon asleep at the bivouac fire

French Revolution and Napoleon slides with handwritten labels (.92-.109):

.92 Napoleon a novice at Brienne [after 1779]

.93 mob at Hotel de Ville, 1789

.94 Louis XVI and mob at Tuilleries, 1792

.95 Marie Antoinette and mob at Tuilleries, 1792

.96 Napoleon at the Tuilleries, 1792

.97 Roget de L’Isle chanting Marseillaise, 1792

.98 bread rioters in Hall of [illegible], 1795

.99 capture of Holland Fleet, 1795

.100 Napoleon’s first visit to Josephine [ca.1795]

.101 Napoleon landing at Malta, 1798

.102 Battle of Aboukir, 1799

.103 French defend bridge in Egypt against Turks, 1799

.104 Napoleon at Hospice St. Bernard [1800?]

.105 death of De Saix [sic, i.e. Desaix] at Marengo, 1800

.106 Napoleon signs the Concordat, 1801

.107 Napoleon entering Berlin, 1806

.108 interview between Napoleon and Queen Louisa [of Prussia], 1807

.109 Queen Louise leaving Konigsburg, 1807

Box 3: French Revolution and Napoleon slides with handwritten labels; C.L.A. slides; other slides

French Revolution and Napoleon slides with handwritten labels (.110-.120):

.110 capitulation of Madrid, 1808

.111 episode in siege of Saragossa, 1809

.112 Napoleon’s last interview with Josephine

.113 Napoleon and King of Rome in country, 1813

.114 Napoleon at peasant’s cottage after Waterloo, 1815

.115 Napoleon at quay at St. Helena

.116 Napoleon and generals at St. Helena

.117 Napoleon in exile

.118 Longwood, St. Helena

.119 Napoleon’s grave, St. Helena

.120 explosion of internal machine under Napoleon’s carriage

C.L.A. slides (.121-.139):

.121 birthplace of Napoleon, island of Corsica; no. 3207, Napoleon (1)

.122 Lettizia Bomolene [Laetitia Ramolino Buonaparte], mother of Napoleon; no. 3235, Napoleon (2)

.123 Napoleon at Toulon; no. 3209 (4) [1793]

.124 triumphal entry of the National Guard into Paris; no. 4569, Napoleon series

.125 Egypt – Cairo panorama and the pyramids; no. 4243

.126 Battle of Aboukir; no. 3214, Napoleon series

.127 Napoleon in pest house, Jaffa

.128 not labeled, but reverse image of .127

.129 Bonaparte elected consul; no. 4567 [November 1799]

.130 not labeled, men swearing allegiance to Napoleon [after being elected consul?]

.131 Napoleon crossing the Alps; no. 1394

.132 Napoleon and Berthier at the Battle of Marengo; no. 4560 [1800]

.133 Napoleon at Battle of Jena [October 1806]

.134 announcing divorce from Josephine

.135 Napoleon in 1814; no. 3978, 46

.136 landing place, Jamestown, St. Helena; no. 3229, Napoleon

.137 Marie Louise; no. [cut off], Napoleon

.138 King of Rome; no. 3238, Napoleon series

.139 Joseph Bonaparte; no. 3240, Napoleon

other slides:

.140 tomb of Napoleon in Paris

.141 Theodore Roosevelt (in uniform) at tomb of Napoleon

.142 portrait – Marshall Foch

.143 portrait – George Washington, by Gilbert Stuart

Box 4: Life of Napoleon series (colored slides in wooden mounts)

.144 portrait: Napoleon Bonaparte

.145 Napoleon at the Bridge of Lodi [May 10, 1796]

.146 Napoleon at the Battle of the Pyramids [July 21, 1798]

.147 Napoleon crossing the Alps; by Bouchet [1800]

.148 the coronation of Napoleon [December 2, 1804]

.149 Napoleon at Battle of Austerlitz [December 2, 1805]

.150 Napoleon at Battle of Friedland [June 14, 1807]

.151 Napoleon at Wagram, by Bellangé [July 5-6, 1809]

152 Napoleon informing Josephine of the divorce

.153 city of Moscow [not labeled]

.154 Moscow [in flames, 1812]

.155 the retreat from Moscow [1812]

.156 Napoleon retreating from Battle of Nations [October 1813]

.157 Napoleon and son [not labeled]

.158 the parting at Fontainebleau [April 1814]

.159 the return from Elba [March 1815]

.160 Napoleon at Waterloo [June 18, 1815]

.161 Napoleon aboard the Bellerophon

.162 Napoleon at St. Helena

.163 deathbed of Napoleon

.164 the apotheosis of Napoleon

Box 5: printed and typed materials

.165-.166 “Napoleon Bonaparte,” two copies of printed script for a lantern slide show. On one copy is handwritten: “Written by C.L.A. years ago. Printed by Casper Briggs, mfr. of lantern slides about 620 Callowhill St., Phila. Reread Dec. 3, 1944.” The script matches with the numbered series, 06x78.43-.78.

.167 typed copy of the script described above

.168 “Napoleon Bonaparte,” a paper by Lewis Altmaier

.169 “Napoleon Bonaparte,” a paper by Carl Lewis Altmaier, April 10, 1893, “reread Dec. 3, 1944”

.170 “Napoleon,” a paper by C.L.A., Nov. 12, 1897

.171 “Freidland,” reproduction of painting by Meissonier printed in Philadelphia Public Ledger, July 28, 1907