Dorchester Illustration of the Day no. 1834
Yesterday we saw the work of lithographer William Sharp. His great rival in lithography was John Henry Bufford. Bufford’s firm produced lively, accomplished images in many forms, including sheet music, city views, marine views and landscapes, book illustrations, reproductions of paintings, commercial depictions of factories, and contemporary genre views. After Bufford’s death in 1870, his sons Frank G. Bufford and John Henry Bufford, Jr. continued the business. By 1879, “J.H. Bufford’s Sons, Manufacturing Publishers of Novelties in Fine Arts” worked from offices at 141-147 Franklin Street, Boston; and in 1881–1882 expanded the enterprise as far as New York and Chicago. In 1880 they built a printing plant in Dorchester at 60 Clayton Street. The building has the date 1880 with a a “b” in the middle of the date. John H. Bufford. Jr. lived at 9 Elm Street from 1873-1877.
The Bufford sons carried on their father’s work until 1890. Over time, the Bufford firm was known for maps and plan’s printed for inclusion in the published reports of city and state commissioners. For manufacturing concerns the Bufford firm printed labels, advertisements, and factory views. The most memorable aspect of the firm’s work was the reproduction of artists’ works that were distributed to a national audience, such as bird’s-eye views of communities and whaling prints.
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