30 Consequential Minutes on Seminary Ridge
By Phil Spaugy The 1st Corps had been driven from East McPherson’s Ridge. After an hour of some of the most intense combat of the Civil War, its battered 1st
Category: Of Arms and Men
Austrian Lorenz Rifle Muskets Raise Questions About the Identification of Three Buckeyes
By Phil Spaugy When I first encountered this compelling image from the Rich Jahn Collection, I believed it would serve as the foundation for an engaging article on Ohio soldiers.
Rifled Muskets, Rear Sights, and Rail Lines: Re-Examining a Veteran Indiana Infantry Image
By Phil Spaugy Eleven veteran federal infantrymen standing at ease with their U.S. Model 1842 rifled muskets are front and center in this richly detailed portrait by a photographer in
Johnnies on the Florida Coast: In Camp with the Jeff Davis Rifles, Company B, 9th Mississippi Infantry
By Phil Spaugy This well-known and often-published image of Company B, 9th Mississippi Volunteer Infantry, is of particular interest to me. It is one of approximately 40 images made in
Riders Above the Clouds
By Phil Spaugy “We had our photograph taken on one plate on Point Lookout” so wrote Corp. William Thomas in his diary on August 29, 1864. This view of 28
“True Blue and Grit to the Backbone”
By Phil Spaugy The story is well known. How John Lawrence Burns of Gettysburg, a man born during the presidency of George Washington, a soldier of 1812, a former town
“Get That Gun!”
By Phil Spaugy February 15, 1862, had been a day of days for Brig. Gen. Lew Wallace. One year earlier, the 34-year-old Indiana resident of Crawfordsville was the captain of
Twin Lady Howitzers of the 5th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry
By Phil Spaugy, featuring images from The Liljenquist Family Collection at the Library of Congress A unique group of images depict the veteran horse soldiers of the 5th Ohio Volunteer
Mississippi, Maynards, and Men. The Maynard Carbines of the Bolivar Troop
By Phil Spaugy The images of these early war, well-armed sergeants once resided in the Herb Peck collection, and have been reproduced in many publications over the last 60 years.
The Invincible Buckeyes of the 4th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry
By Phil Spaugy This inaugural column is an excellent case of 19th century photography and arms technology dovetailing perfectly into one another. The subject is a compelling portrait of an