Autumn 2024 Issue Highlights
Two years ago, I visited collector Al Niemiec in the Chicago suburbs. I had met Al in person once before for coffee, and since then we corresponded from time to
Tag: daguerreotype
Plate or Paper? Choosing the best format for a portrait photograph during the Civil War
Behind every Civil War portrait photograph lies a question that the person paying the bill had to consider: Which format do I choose? Two primary options were available. Hard plates,
Hints of Antebellum Militia and Regular Army
The jacket worn by this clean-shaven soldier suggests a Mexican War era militiaman: high collar, tight-fitting sleeves and cuff trim. One would expect cloth epaulettes with short fringe for enlisted
A Backdrop Connected to Portraits of Quantrill’s Men
By Adam Ochs Fletcher I have sometimes found that knowing quite a lot about a backdrop is not all that helpful in better acquainting me with the subjects who stood
Bearskin and Brass: A Stylish Bay Stater
At first glance, the mammoth bearskin cap parked on the table next to this soldier is an attention-grabber. Though the name of its wearer is currently lost in time, the
The Answer Man for American Boundary Questions
When it came to the question of borders, Col. James Duncan Graham was the military’s go-to engineer for answers. For the better part of the first half of the 19th
Rats, Crossed Arms and a Mourning Ribbon
By Ronald S. Coddington with Warren “H” Shindle and Glenn Ethridge Hilburn The phone call that came in to Glenn Hilburn’s antique shop in Frederick, Md., on a spring day
CARDOMANIA! How the Carte de Visite Became the Facebook of the 1860s
By Ronald S. Coddington Jesse Harrison Whitehurst knew the ebbs and flows of the photography business better than most of his contemporaries. The daguerreian pioneer had a knack for adapting
Soldier or Civilian?
One finds it difficult to discern whether the subject of this portrait is a soldier or a civilian. The pattern 1839 fatigue cap, worn at a jaunty angle, and the