Site #5: Northport

Lower Main Street, Northport, Collection of Preservation Long Island, 2011.2.jpg

Edward Lange, Lower Main Street, Northport, Preservation Long Island, 2011.2

Pop on over to the waterfront of Northport to find this view looking west down to the end of Main Street! What do you notice has changed? What has stayed the same?

Lange made his painting from an elevated perspective. While he might have taken a preliminary sketch from a second-floor building along the side of the road, it's also possible he intentionally raised our eyeline to give us a better view of the storefronts across the street. The text stenciled on the signs of storefronts likely would not have been visible in a photograph taken from the same position. Several of these storeowners, or the property manager who rented space to the storeowners, might have even commissioned this work to hang in one of their shops or offices.

After you check out the view of the harbor, head east back up Main Street to take a look around the Northport Historical Society!

Site #5: Northport