When the Chautauqua Institute was founded in 1874, the only way to get there was to take a train to a town at either end of 17-mile long Lake Chautauqua, and then board a steamboat to get to the Institution’s grounds. Dozens of wooden steamboats carried thousands of visitors to and from Chautauqua into the 1930s, when automobile and bus service took over the task. The steamboats have passed into history – only one, a replica, survives as a tourist attraction. Yet this small wooden pier remains as a reminder of the days when the lake played a central role at Chautauqua. Today, visitors use this pier for recreation and relaxation. In this image, five Chautauquans are catching some sun and enjoying the waterfront atmosphere. I stress the horizontal thrust of the pier by placing it within a horizontal frame, and waited for an oncoming motorboat to roar past it. I incongruously stop the boats progress just as it reached the center of the frame.