Apprehending Darkness in the Shadows

“The Policeman,” from City Characters; or, Familiar Scenes in Town. Philadelphia: Geo. S. Appleton, 1851. (Gift of Mrs. S. Marguerite Brenner)

This children’s book contains images of figures integral to the urban landscape, such as a street sweeper, a peddler, and a merchant. Interestingly, a policeman apprehending a boy for pickpocketing or fighting was also a “familiar scene.”