The Baker's Wagon

William P. Chappel

1870s · Oil on slate paper · The American Wing

Against the backdrop of the potter William Marshall’s shop and the widow Bumstead’s corner home, a baker drives his cart full of fresh bread down Hester Street in the tenth ward. A staple of the American diet, a simple loaf of bread could be a very serious matter. Since the city’s settlement, government officials regulated the price, quality, and weight of bread made by licensed bakers, who had to initial all their loaves. The bakers often argued that the city’s fixed rates, or assizes, were too low and pushed for free-market pricing, which they eventually achieved by the 1820s.

Artist

William P. Chappel

Date

1870s

Medium

Oil on slate paper

Culture

American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

The Edward W. C. Arnold Collection of New York Prints, Maps, and Pictures, Bequest of Edward W. C. Arnold, 1954