Phantom Curve

William Henry Jackson, artist

1843–1942

Phantom Curve, circa 1880

Where object was made: Conejos County, Colorado, United States

Material/technique: albumen print

Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 10.7 x 18 cm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 4 3/16 x 7 1/16 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 14 x 19 in

Credit line: Museum purchase

Accession number: 1978.0145

Not on display

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Label texts

Under Construction

After the Civil War, geographical, botanical, and scientific investigation of the American West developed at the same time as its increased settlement. Several American photographers, including William Henry Jackson, participated in geographical surveys and used their photographs to create pictorial records of this new territory. After traveling to Yellowstone in Wyoming and throughout Colorado with a survey team, Jackson continued photographing the nature, railroads, and everyday life in Colorado.

The Denver & Rio Grande Railway Company commissioned this photograph of a passenger train on Phantom Curve, a picturesque tourist destination in Conejos Country. The spectacular view of the railroad revealed the development of the rail transportation system and attracted tourists to the region. The encounter between nature and human construction demonstrates changing twentieth-century perceptions about the West, from a wild, mythic place to a civilized destination.