Analyzing Images of the Boston Massacre

Image 1: The Boston Massacre, an original painting by William L. Champney in 1855. In the center is Crispus Attucks, a Boston resident of African and Native American descent who was the first to die in the confrontation with British Redcoats. Champney’s painting was modeled after an engraving done by Henry Pelham titled "The Fruits of Arbitrary Power" that was done right after the event. 

Image 2: This famous engraving titled "The Bloody Massacre in King-Street" was made by Paul Revere about three weeks after the Boston Massacre. He copied an engraving done earlier by Henry Pelham. Revere’s engraving shows an orderly line of British soldiers firing into an American crowd and includes a poem that Revere likely wrote.

Image 3: This 1855 image by William Cooper Nell is taken from an American history that focuses on African American soldiers during the American Revolution and the War of 1812. The book is considered to be the first history book by and about Black American history that is based on written documentation.

Image 4: This 1878 drawing by Alonzo Chappel shows a more chaotic scene. Chappel was an American historical painter who is best known for paintings depicting people and events from the American Revolution.