Drawings of landmark buildings were a specialty of Rile’s. He did at least one other known series of New York City views now in the New-York Historical Society. He also made a series of drawings of places in Whitewater, Wisconsin, where he lived for a number of years as a young man. His drawings exhibit a keen sense of the history of the City and its urban development with the passage of time, from its 17th-century Dutch colonial origins to the early 20th-century, employing attention to accuracy and detail though in simple sketch renderings. The collection as such, as rendered with titles, reflects the deep personal passion that the artist had for the subject matter.<\/p>\n
Henry E. Rile was a prolific artist based in New York City who specialized in drawings of buildings in black ink, gray wash and graphite on paper. The New-York Historical Society has a large collection of over 125 works of various views of places in New York City dated between c. 1859 and 1915 by Henry and by his son Lovett Rile (1888-1943), including a sketchbook with 278 drawings. The Whitewater Historical Society has a diary and a collection of pencil drawings and watercolors of buildings in Whitewater, Wisconsin, almost certainly by the same Henry Rile, whom they describe as a “young New York State resident” and “Yankee immigrant who lived in Whitewater between 1856 and 1862.” The drawings were donated to both historical societies by his descendants.<\/p>\n
Full manuscript title page: New York In the Days Gone By of Old. Drawings made from Small and Large Pictures From Various Sources Mostly From Corporation Manuals of the City of New York. Some Original. By Henry E. Rile. 1912.<\/strong> [Note:\u00a0Although Rile evidently created the title page in 1912 many of the drawings were made in later years.]<\/p>\n Condition: Condition varies; please ask for details on specific ones. These are from a uniform series, most titled and dated by the artist. Some of the drawings have images drawn directly on entire sheet; the size of the image varies leaving margins, but generally each image fills the page well. Some of the drawings have images on a separate sheet, mounted to the larger 11 x 14 inch sheet; the size of the image varies leaving margins, but generally each image fills the page well. Some images are vertical; some are horizontal. Some images uniformly toned. Otherwise generally with the usual overall light toning, wear, and handling. Some vary with occasional pale scattered foxing, short tears or minor chips in margins, not obtrusive.<\/p>\n References:<\/p>\n “Henry E. Rile.” New-York Historical Society.<\/i> 2023. https:\/\/emuseum.nyhistory.org\/people\/4666\/henry-e-rile\/objects (6 February 2023).<\/p>\n “Lovett Rile.” Ancestry.com.<\/i> https:\/\/www.ancestry.com\/genealogy\/records\/lovett-rile-24-216tw8t (6 February 2023).<\/p>\n “March 2008 Newsletter.” Whitewater Historical Society.<\/i> 2008 March. https:\/\/whitewaterhistoricalsociety.org\/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=159&Itemid=515 (6 Feburary 2023).<\/p>\n “Rile Collection.” Whitewater Historical Society.<\/i> https:\/\/www.whitewaterhistoricalsociety.org\/exhibits-collections\/rile-collection (6 February 2023).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Henry E. Rile (1841-1929) Catharine Market in 1850<\/strong> Five Points in 1859, Orange and Cross Sts.<\/strong> The Old Brewery Five Points in 1853 Masonic Hall Broadway, in 1880, Between Duane and Pearl Sts.<\/strong> The Stadt\u00a0<\/strong>Huys 1690<\/b> First Royal Exchange Foot of Broad Street<\/strong> The Royal Exchange Broad Street in 1753. Second on Same Spot.<\/strong> N.W. Corner of Pearl and Chatham Streets in 1861<\/strong> Old Houses in William Street Near Liberty Street and Maiden Lane in 1800<\/strong> The Schoeinge, or Street piling on the East River near Present Coenties Slip in 1658<\/strong> Frankfort Street, opposite Gold Street in 1859<\/strong> Baxter Street Old Houses and Tenements in 1862<\/strong> Richmond Hill Mansion Corner of Present Charlton and Varick Streets in 1797<\/strong> Baptist Church, Oliver St. in 1808 N.S. East of Chatham<\/strong> More Rile Drawings: Henry E. Rile drew this series of views of various places in Manhattan and Brooklyn at the turn of the century. They were issued in a portfolio with a manuscript title page “New York In the Days Gone by of Old…by Henry E. Rile” (full title in description below). Some were drawn on site and others were based on source material including historical prints that had been published in the 19th century in annual New York City Corporation Manuals. Indeed some have the notation by Rile “Manuel [sic]” in the lower margin. Each drawing is titled and dated by Rile, identifying the subject and the date of the image source along with the month, day and year of his drawing. Together, Rile’s drawings record the historic architecture of the City, from famous landmark buildings, churches, and mansions, to simple tenements uptown. He documented commerce and bridges on the East, Hudson, and Harlem Rivers. Portions of Manhattan represented include Uptown, Midtown, the Lower Manhattan financial district, and the area formerly known as Five Points now occupied by the Civic Center and Chinatown. Scarce views of the Upper East Side include a stone mansion known as Smith’s Folly on 61st Street and First Avenue.<\/p>\n Product description continues below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":37259,"template":"","meta":{"wds_primary_product_brand":0,"wds_primary_product_cat":0,"footnotes":""},"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[923,561,922],"product_tag":[61,531,896,1303,743,1792,2225,541,2309],"class_list":{"0":"post-4855","1":"product","2":"type-product","3":"status-publish","4":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"product_cat-historic-sites-buildings","7":"product_cat-new-york-city","8":"product_cat-cityscapes","9":"product_tag-20th-century","10":"product_tag-architectural","11":"product_tag-architecture","12":"product_tag-building","13":"product_tag-drawing","14":"product_tag-historic","15":"product_tag-landmark","16":"product_tag-new-york","17":"product_tag-rile","18":"post","19":"post-with-thumbnail","20":"post-with-thumbnail-large","22":"first","23":"instock","24":"purchasable","25":"product-type-simple"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.georgeglazer.com\/wpmain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/4855","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.georgeglazer.com\/wpmain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.georgeglazer.com\/wpmain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/product"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgeglazer.com\/wpmain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/4855\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37337,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgeglazer.com\/wpmain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/4855\/revisions\/37337"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgeglazer.com\/wpmain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37259"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.georgeglazer.com\/wpmain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4855"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"product_brand","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgeglazer.com\/wpmain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_brand?post=4855"},{"taxonomy":"product_cat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgeglazer.com\/wpmain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_cat?post=4855"},{"taxonomy":"product_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.georgeglazer.com\/wpmain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_tag?post=4855"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nNew York City Views, Lower Manhattan<\/strong>
\nfrom\u00a0<\/span>New York in the Days Gone By of Old<\/i><\/strong>
\nBlack ink, gray wash and graphite on paper
\nNew York: 1907-1914
\n11 x 14 inches, overall, or smaller, average approximate
\n$375 each<\/p>\n
\nDated July 11, 1912
\n8 x 10 inches, image
\n11 x 14 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nDated April 12, 1913
\n9.5 x 11.75 inches, image
\n11 x 14 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Dated February 27, 1913
\n7 x 9.75 inches, image
\n9.75 x 14 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nDated September 27, 1907
\n5 x 7 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nDated January 29, 1913
\n5 x 7.75 inches, image
\n7.5 x 9.75 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nDated January 27 1913
\n8.5 x 9.75 inches, image
\n10.5 x 12 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nDated February 11, 1913
\n6 x 8 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nDated July 19, 1912
\n7.75 x 9 inches, image
\n11 x 14 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nDated May 2, 1913
\n8 x 12.5 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nDated April 5, 1915
\n10 x 12.75 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nDated February 18, 1913
\n8 x 12 inches, image
\n11 x 14 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nDated November 20, 1914
\n10.75 x 14 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nDated January 24, 1913
\n9 x 12 inches, image
\n11 x 14 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nJuly 25, 1912
\n7.75 x 9 inches, image
\n11 x 14 inches, overall<\/p>\n
\nBattery & Castle Garden<\/a>
\nBrooklyn<\/a> | Greenwich Village<\/a>
\nMidtown<\/a>
\nUpper East Side<\/a> | Upper West Side<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n