When Thomas Moran and his brother Edward (1829–1901) visited Great Britain in 1862, they were there to study art, but it was also a homecoming. The brothers were born in Bolton, England; they emigrated with their family to the United States in 1844, after technological innovations in the textile industries had led to the unemployment of handloom weavers such as their parents.¹ In fact, Friedrich Engels, in his 1845 study of industrialization and its consequences for the working class in Great Britain, noted that Bolton was “among the worst” of the industrial towns, the polluted waterway little more than a “string of stagnant pools” that contributed “to the total pollution of the air.”²

Nonetheless, the brothers did make a point of visiting their birthplace on the trip, and Thomas recorded his impression of the city in this sepia wash, Toothill Bridge, Bolton, Lancashire.³ Although the waterway does not appear to be a series of “stagnant pools,” signs of industrialization define the city’s skyline—the spires of Bolton’s churches vie for dominance with factory chimneys. The latter appear to be winning, as evidenced by the darkened sky suggesting polluted air. Closer inspection of the brickwork on the bridge’s top rail and the arch underneath reveals what may be soot, which has discolored parts of the structure. Moreover, Moran’s choice of a sepia wash, with its reddish-brown tonalities, reinforces the sense of a dirty, gritty city.

—Sandra Pauly, Henry Luce Foundation Curatorial Scholar for Moran Collection Research, 2021

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¹ Anderson et al., Thomas Moran, 21–22.
² Engels quoted in Anderson et al., Thomas Moran, 22. In 1845, German socialist philosopher Engels published this study as Die Lage der arbeitenden Klasse in England (The Condition of the Working Class in England).
³ This was titled Forthill Bridge, Bolton, Lancashire, after Moran’s handwritten notation in the upper right. There is, however, no Forthill Bridge in Bolton, England; rather, it is known as Toothill Bridge. Curators at the Bolton Museum and Art Gallery have confirmed this, and it is easy to see how Moran’s handwriting was previously misread. Thank you to Moran scholar Dr. Joni Kinsey for calling this to the attention of Gilcrease Museum.