Souvenir of the coldest winter on record. Scene on the Delaware River at Philada. during the severe winter of 1856. (4624477353)

Frolicking genre scene showing hundreds of persons skating and sledding on the frozen river in front of the old Navy Yard at Southwark. Skaters and sledders include men pushing women in chairs with blades, men pushing a sleigh of women passengers, a man pulling a boy on a sled, and a man being pulled by a dog running through a crowd of skaters. In the foreground, a couple stands and watches the activity; a woman peddler, seated on a stool, sells an apple to a boy; and a man has fallen on the ice, near a boy leaning on another boy. In the background, a sleigh ride has been fabricated with several men pushing a large pivoted pole lever to propel a toboggan of women passengers in a circle on an area free from congestion. Watch houses stand near by, with throngs of people surrounding the sheds. Moored ships, steamboats, and sailing vessels line the shore. Also shows distant cityscape.