Prince Rivers and the Post-Civil War South Carolina Legislature
By Stephen Berry and Kurt Luther Prince Rivers (c. 1822-1887) was born enslaved in South Carolina and worked as a coachman before escaping to Union lines in 1862. He became
Tag: carte de visite
Reading a Portrait
By Buck Zaidel and Ronald S. Coddington Portrait painters had been telling stories for centuries before photography arrived. A painted likeness was never simply a face. Artists placed their subjects
“Barrel Shirts,” Killed at Franklin, and a USCT Soldier
Wearing “barrel shirts” or “wooden overcoats,” four soldiers under armed guard are paraded through Camp Lookout, Md. In this common form of army punishment by humiliation, the signs on the
Civil War Portraits: Union and Confederate Soldiers, a Sailor, and an Indiana Quartermaster at Point Lookout
Western campaigners, one wearing an identification badge and another with a cigar, posed in Kentucky towards the war’s end. A U.S. sailor of Asian heritage posed for his likeness in
“Woe Be to Those Who Laugh at His Death”
War Department clerk and former army captain Edward C. Townsend was overcome with emotion after news of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln reached him. “Never before did I shed tears
Capturing Elmira: The photographers who documented a Northern prisoner of war camp
By Richard Leisenring, Jr., adapted from his forthcoming book Elmira. The name is as recognizable to any novice Civil War historian as Gettysburg, Appomattox, or Andersonville. Over the years, books
Collector and Mentor: Seven decades after he began his Civil War journey, Karl Sundstrom continues to inspire
Introduction by Austin Sundstrom, with images from his Uncle Karl’s collection Some of my earliest memories of my uncle, Karl Sundstrom, revolve around visiting his house in the town just
Applying the “Trinity” to ID Some Faces in a 557-Image Album in the National Archives
By Kurt Luther Civil War photo sleuthing is more than just giving a name to an unidentified soldier or sailor portrait. While a name is a critical clue in rediscovering
A Sanitary Fair Memento Recalls a Company of St. Louis Defenders
Love of country dominates this portrait of a young woman who posed for this photograph during the Civil War. An analysis of this image points to her being a volunteer
Wounded Warriors: Slings, crutches, and missing limbs are emblems of personal loss and patriotic sacrifice
The sight of a man missing an arm or leg rarely occurred before the Civil War, observed a newspaper editorial in the Confederate capital during the waning days of the