Antique Pencil Drawing with Pertinent Applied Collage - View of New Jersey College c. 1855 - newest Collage - Original Frame

Antique Pencil Drawing - New Jersey College 1855 - Collage - Original Frame

Found a few years ago- and altered to some small extent by me.
A pencil drawing of New Jersey College main building - - c. 1855.
The drawing stayed framed behind glass for decades- and on the reverse- written in pencil:
"View of New Jersey College c. 1855"
(Note: this I removed and cut down to fit at the bottom of the drawing itself.
It also obscures some of a glue stain from long ago.)

It's a modest little piece, by a sweet and naive hand. Other than the title written on the back, it is unsigned... or rather, any signature was cut off by framers.

Featured behind a collection of tall trees and tall fence -
a rendition of the main building of the College of New Jersey - as it's now called.
And in the street, a horse and rider cantor by- with a few ladies entering on foot.
The drawing is in pencil- on a thick card paper... greatly yellowed at the borders where an acidic mat interacted with the paper.

The College was founded in 1855 as New Jersey Normal School.
This piece - as found- with frame and backing information - seems to have been made somewhere around or after that date.

Unfortunately- the framer seemed to have cut off an inked in title to the piece. It is barely visible at the bottom of the piece.

The frame is a simple darkened wood- a bit banged about thru the years- but sturdy newest yet.
There is an embedded loop on the top which might have served as the original hanging device.
Later, I presume, eye hooks and a copper wire were added to hang.
Measures:
The wooden Frame is 16 1/4" x 12 1/8"
and the window: 13 1/2" x 9 1/2".

The Framer:
The Old Print Shop-
located in NYC, was operating since 1898 and proudly displayed their printed tag on the back.

The backing paper was in tatters, and the old mat was quite destructively acidic to the piece.
I took the whole thing apart- and there were glue marks and etc-
I covered these to the best of my abilities - with bits from old valentine cards- circa 1905.
I saved both the written description and the framer's tag and they are mounted now below the drawing...


And so.
As Found and altered by me.

{211.21}