Finding the Identities of a Mystery Civil War Couple
By Kurt Luther Portraits of Civil War couples have long captivated me. They capture a fleeting moment of togetherness, a quiet counterpoint to the distant bugles and battles. We see
Tag: civil war photo sleuth
A Guide to Exploring Photo Sleuthing and Generative AI
By Kurt Luther Artificial intelligence (AI) seems to be everywhere lately–in the news, on our phones, in schools and workplaces. Civil War photo sleuthing is no exception. AI has been
Mistaken Identity and Fame Fixation
By Kurt Luther Ann Shumard, Senior Curator of Photographs at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, reached out to me with a question about a possible misidentification. A glass plate negative
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 Portrait in a Clock Pendulum Bob and Other Distinctive Images
This portrait in a portrait of two unknown soldiers leaves one to wonder the nature of their relationship. Father and son? Brothers? Uncle and cousin? Professor and pupil? Though their
Oscar F. Douglas: The Photographer Behind the Iconic USCT Drummer Boy
By Kurt Luther The pair of cartes de visite of a young African American boy transformed from a runaway slave into a Union drummer boy are among the most memorable
Photo Sleuthing Some Virginia Tech Cadet Portraits
By Kurt Luther In past columns, we often focused on identifying Civil War soldier photos. However, military images are a much broader genre, and one type of portrait that has
Investigating the Iconic Portraits of a USCT Drummer Boy
By Kurt Luther The pair of portraits of an African American young man—one version in tattered clothes and another in the uniform of a Union drummer boy—is among the most
Civil War Photo Sleuth: An Update
By Kurt Luther Last August, we launched Civil War Photo Sleuth (CWPS), a free website that brings together community expertise and face recognition technology to identify unknown Civil War soldier
What Are The Odds? Photo Sleuthing by the Numbers
By Kurt Luther One of the great strengths of the Civil War Photo Sleuth software we’re developing is that it makes it easy to find soldiers who look very much