Photograph of an unidentified cavalry bugler. Commands in the cavalry were transmitted by bugle, so it was important for officers to be able to readily distinguish the buglers in the smoke and confusion of battle. A bugler’s uniform jacket was trimmed with yellow worsted herringbone braid, and buglers usually rode grey horses to further help ...
Undated photograph of an unidentified Union engineer, holding a civilian hat with the engineer “castle” insignia. Engineers played a vital role in the Civil War, building pontoon and railroad bridges, forts, emplacements for artillery batteries and roads. Perhaps the most famous engineer unit from the Trans-Mississippi Theater was Colonel Josiah W. Bissell’s “Engineer Regiment of ...
Undated photograph of an unidentified private in the 2nd Missouri Cavalry, “Merrill’s Horse.” Organized by Colonel Lewis Merrill in 1861, the 2nd Missouri Cavalry battled guerrilla forces in Missouri, then participated in the Little Rock campaign, Frederick Steele’s Camden Expedition, and in actions against General Sterling Price during his 1864 raid through Missouri. The members of “Merrill’s ...
Unidentified civilian sutler of the 6th Missouri Infantry; sutlers were merchants who were allowed to sell goods not provided by the government to soldiers of a particular unit or post. Only one sutler was allowed per unit or post; they were appointed by the Secretary of War, regimental officers or governors. The most ...
This photograph of an unidentified mounted dragoon soldier is a mystery. It may depict a member of a cavalry company in a state’s pre-Civil War militia. At the start of the Civil War, many such militia units were mustered into service; some briefly retained impressive dress uniforms before abandoning them for more practical ...
Undated photograph of an unidentified African-American women; a tentative identification indicates she may be the wife of Joe Grafs, whose photograph is also in the Wilson’s Creek Battlefield collection. Carte-de-Visite by Unknown Photographer Image Courtesy Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield; WICR 31936
Image of an Osage warrior in native dress, possibly a member of the 2nd Regiment Indian Home Guard; the Osage were native to Kentucky, but relocated to the Kansas-Oklahoma area after years of fighting with the Iroquois. A treaty between the Osage Nation and the Confederacy was signed on October 2, 1861. A cavalry battalion ...
Post-Civil War group photograph, circa 1890, of either a Grand Army of the Republic encampment or a reunion of the 6th Missouri Cavalry (US). “T. Hodge Jones” is written on the back of the photograph, and Hodge probably appears in this image. Thomas Hodge Jones enlisted in Company A, 6th Missouri Cavalry on August 12, ...
This tintype photograph depicts an unknown private in the Pulaski Light Artillery Battery. Organized in December 1860 in Little Rock, Pulaski County, Arkansas, the Pulaski Light Artillery Battery was originally known as the Totten Light Artillery Battery. It was named after William Totten, a prominent physician in Little Rock, and his son, Captain James Totten, the ...
This photograph shows an unidentified sailor from the USS Benton, a Union ironclad gunboat. A sailor’s flat hat often bore a ribbon with the name of the ship to which he was assigned; note the name of the Benton on this sailor’s hat. The USS Benton was converted by St. Louis engineer James B. Eads ...
The USS Benton was converted by St. Louis engineer James B. Eads from a catamaran snagboat and commissioned in February 1862. The Benton saw action at Island No. 10, Memphis and Grand Gulf, and bombarded the city of Vicksburg during the 1863 Union siege. After participating in the Red River Expedition, USS Benton was decommissioned ...
The USS Black Hawk was built as a large side-wheel steamer in 1848 as the Uncle Sam in New Albany, Indiana; purchased by the Union Navy at Cairo, Illinois, on November 24, 1862, the ship was commissioned on December 6, 1862, and renamed the USS Black Hawk a week later. During most of her service, the ...
The USS Carondelet, a 175-foot ironclad river gunboat built in 1861 by James Eads, St. Louis, Missouri, was commissioned on January 15, 1862, at Cairo, Illinois and assigned to the Western Flotilla. Under the command of Captain Henry A. Walke, Carondelet had a crew of 251 officers and men. Between January and October 1862, the Carondelet ...
The USS Cincinnati was a City Class ironclad gunboat built in 1861 by James Eads, St. Louis, Missouri, and commissioned and placed into service in January 1862, at Mound City, Illinois. Like the other City Class ironclads, Cincinnati was assigned to the Western Gunboat Flotilla, and participated in the capture of Forts Henry and Donelson ...
