Midnight Race on the Mississippi 1877

This is a print entitled "Midnight Race on the Mississippi," created by Currier and Ives, a renowned American printmaking firm active from 1857 to 1907. The print captures a steamboat race under the moonlight, a popular form of entertainment and a symbol of technological progress during the 19th century. This image visualizes the romanticism of American expansion and industrialization. Yet, this imagery conceals the troubling social realities of the time. The steamboats, while symbols of progress, also represent the exploitation of resources and labor, particularly enslaved African Americans. This firm's prints, disseminated widely, shaped public perceptions and reinforced prevailing social and political ideologies. To fully grasp the print's significance, historians consult period newspapers, advertisements, and other visual materials. It enables them to reveal the complex social and institutional forces that shaped its production and reception.