"The Grand Panorama of a Whaling Voyage ‘Round the World" Roll 1, Section 1/44

[ The Grand Panorama of a Whaling Voyage ‘Round the World is viewed from right to left ]

The Grand Panorama of A Whaling Voyage ‘Round the World begins looking west across the Acushnet River toward the Acushnet Heights section of New Bedford, the railroad passes the Wamsutta Mills cotton cloth factory at far right and a farmer’s windmill dominates the heights. The mansions of whaling merchants line County Street along the hilltop, and the City Common green space falls away beneath them. In the foreground is Mrs. Charlotte Pope’s house. Her husband, Edward Pope who built the house on Pope’s Island, was town constable. Behind it is the Pearl Street Railway Depot. Traffic busily crosses the New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge, an important conduit between the two seaports.

At right, the smoking stack of the New Bedford Steam Mill Company rises in the middle distance. Samuel Rodman, Jr. built this factory to manufacture cotton cloth in 1846. The stack of the Acushnet Iron Foundry on Fish Island also rises prominently while whaling merchant John Avery Parker’s red brick counting house sits at the foot of the bridge. This view highlights the city center, including the churches identified by their steeples (left to right,) the First Baptist Church, the North Congregational Church, the North Christian Church, and the Pacific Congregational Church. The U.S. Custom House with its grey granite pillars sits in center of the business district. Coastal and small craft ply the waters, whale ships tie up at several
wharves, offloading cargo, outfitting for another voyage, or “hove down” at wharf-side undergoing repair.