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Orr Etchings Facts 

World-renowned etcher and an inventor.  

 

In this excerpt from Orr's 1892 diary, we get a glimpse of the mind of an artistic genius at the early age of 16. This invention was meant to help his employer at the time by creating a better way to work in printing.  Orr hoped to patent it, but it appears it was later patented by someone else.

Photograph of pages from Orr's 1892 diary showing an invention of his related to printing.
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Some of the prints of President Andrew Johnson's Birthplace in Raleigh incorrectly list his last name as "Johnston." Ours correctly lists his name as "Johnson."
Photograph of section of our Orr etching depicting Andrew Johnson's Birthplace with name misspelled.

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The prints of The Old Well and "Old East" at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill erroneously list the location as "North Carolina State University, Chapel Hill."

Photograph of section of our Orr etching depicting Old East and the Old Well at the University of North Carolina with the wrong name for the university.

Now you see it; now you don't.

 

There are two versions of the North Carolina State Capitol Building - the original plate had a tree obscuring the view; in the final version, Orr removes it in favor of showing an unobstructed view of the building.

Photograph of Orr Etching depicting the North Carolina State Capitol with a tree obstructing the building.
Photograph of Orr Etching depicting the North Carolina State Capitol with no tree obstructing the building.
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