ORIGINAL "MONITOR" AFTER HER FIGHT WITH THE "MERRIMAC"
ORIGINAL "MONITOR" AFTER HER FIGHT WITH THE "MERRIMAC"
ORIGINAL "MONITOR" AFTER HER FIGHT WITH THE "MERRIMAC"
RUINS OF FORT PULASKI, GA., APRIL, 1862
RUINS OF FORT PULASKI, GA., APRIL, 1862
RUINS OF FORT PULASKI, GA., APRIL, 1862
OFFICERS ON BOARD "MONITOR," JULY 9, 1862, AT HAMPTON ROADS
OFFICERS ON BOARD "MONITOR," JULY 9, 1862, AT HAMPTON ROADS
OFFICERS ON BOARD "MONITOR," JULY 9, 1862, AT HAMPTON ROADS
THE BREACHFORT AT PULASKI AFTER BATTLE
THE BREACHFORT AT PULASKI AFTER BATTLE
THE BREACHFORT AT PULASKI AFTER BATTLE
The most powerful fleet that had ever sailed under the American Flag entered the deltas of the Mississippi River on the eighteenth day of April, in 1862, to force the surrender of the largest and richest city of the Confederacy. The strategic value of New Orleans was greater than that of any other point in the Southern States. Its export trade in cotton and sugar was larger than any city in the world. The great fleet had sailed from Hampton Roads on the second of February under the command of a man sixty years old, who was born in Tennessee, but offered himself to the Union cause—David G. Farragut. This photograph was taken as he stood on the deck of his flagship "Hartford." From the firing of the first gun on New Orleans a rain of iron fell upon the forts. During the first twenty-four hours Captain David Porter's gunners dropped fifteen hundred bombs in and around the forts. The night was hideous with fiery meteors and the day dense with smoke and flame. The roar of the artillery was deafening and shattered the windows in the houses for many miles. For six days and nights the terrific bombardment raged. When Farragut attempted to run the gauntlet to the metropolis of the gulf he swept the shores with a continuous fire of twenty-six thousand shells—a million and a half pounds of metal. The Confederates pushed a fire raft down the river to the daring admiral's flagship and the "Hartford" burst into flame. While one part of the crew fought the fire, the others poured metal from her guns onto the enemy. On the twenty-sixth day of April, Farragut entered the harbor to New Orleans and on the twenty-ninth unfurled the Stars and Stripes in the city.
WITH flags flying and bands playing "The Star Spangled Banner," the troops from the transports, which brought fifteen thousand men under command of General Benjamin F. Butler, marched into New Orleans on the first day of May in 1862. Crowds of men and women surged the sidewalks cursing the Yankees and hurrahing for Beauregard, Bull Run and Shiloh. When Butler established military government over New Orleans the city had a population of about 140,000. About 13,000 of these were slaves. Nearly 30,000 of the best citizenship were fighting in the Confederate ranks. The city was on the verge of starvation. More than a third of the population had no money and no means of earning it. Prices rose enormously. Butler contributed a thousand dollars of his own money to relieve the suffering. Supplies were hurried from all sources and sold under Butler's orders at cost to those who had funds. The price of flour fell from sixty to twenty-four dollars a barrel. Butler proved to be a great organizer. The people were set to work cleaning and improving their city. His administration was always humane. The execution of a gambler who tore down the American Flag from the mint, and the condemning of a gang of thugs was his only show of the iron hand. This photograph shows Major-General Butler, with his staff, as he appeared in his fighting days. When leaving Lincoln and his cabinet to start on his expedition, Butler exclaimed: "Good-bye, Mr. President; we shall take New Orleans or you will never see me again!" With Farragut he kept his promise.
THE heaviest battery of artillery ever mounted in the world, up to 1862, was before Yorktown when the Union army was maneuvering to enter Richmond from the south. The intention was to shell the Confederates out of a strongly intrenched position by overwhelming fire. This photograph was taken inside of the fortification that threatened to annihilate an entire army. In it were huge demons of death—that were hitherto unknown in warfare—capable of throwing 900 pounds of iron at one broadside into the lines of the enemy. There were five 100-pounder and two 200-pounder Parrot rifled cannon. The topography of the country would not admit of engagements with unfortified lines. The Confederates concentrated their forces in the woods. The Union commanders at first despised picks and shovels. They insisted that all defenses except those naturally available were beneath a soldier's dignity. The battles of the East and West were being fought on open ground. The campaign against Richmond, however, proved the necessity of defenses to protect the lines from unexpected attacks from the hidden enemy. The Confederates became uneasy over this shift of fighting front and the magnitude of the preparations at Yorktown so astounded them that they abandoned the position. On May third the great battery threw a charge into the Confederate stronghold. It was intended to open the bombardment on the following morning, but at dawn it was found that the Confederates had evacuated. The heavy artillery was known as Battery No. 1, and manned by Company B, First Connecticut Heavy Artillery. It became a matter of discussion throughout the world. Military attachés from many foreign powers visited the breastworks to report the situation to their governments.
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN BEHIND THE BREASTWORKS AT YORKTOWN, VA., IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN BEHIND THE BREASTWORKS AT YORKTOWN, VA., IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN BEHIND THE BREASTWORKS AT YORKTOWN, VA., IN 1862
AT sunrise of the fourth of May, in 1862, the Union troops entered the deserted Confederate works at Yorktown and found seventy-one heavy guns, a large number of tents, with ammunition and materials of war. The works were found to be of scientific construction and great strength and undoubtedly could have withstood the heavy fire from the heaviest battery in the world. This photograph shows the remains of one of the heavy Confederate guns blown into atoms rather than leave it to the Union forces. Fragments of the gun strew the ground, together with shell and grape-shot. The soldiers seen in works are Union Zouaves. The Confederate forces of 50,000 men under Magruder were pursued by McClellan's 85,000 Union soldiers to Williamsburg, after which the enemy retired unmolested behind the lines of Richmond. While Brady was taking his photographs at Yorktown, he met the distinguished Prince de Joinville and his royal companions of the House of Orleans, who, for pure love of adventure, had come from France and were following the Army of the Potomac as aides-de-camp, being permitted to serve without taking the oath of allegiance, and without pay. The noblemen were eating dinner in camp when Brady secured this picture. A few days later Brady met the Battery C, 3rd U.S. Flying Artillery, on the road to Fair Oaks and secured a remarkable photograph. Another picture in this campaign is the ruins of the Norfolk navy-yard. It had been the chief naval depot of the Confederates, but on the tenth of May, 1862, General John E. Wool, with 5,000 men, entered the city. The navy-yard, with its workshops, storehouses and other buildings had been wrecked, but two hundred cannon fell into the hands of the Union forces. The Confederate ironclad "Merrimac" tried to escape up the James, but grounded and was blown up.
CONFEDERATE WORKS AFTER EVACUATION OF YORKTOWN
CONFEDERATE WORKS AFTER EVACUATION OF YORKTOWN
CONFEDERATE WORKS AFTER EVACUATION OF YORKTOWN
ADVENTUROUS EUROPEAN NOBLEMEN WITH ARMY OF THE POTOMAC IN 1862
ADVENTUROUS EUROPEAN NOBLEMEN WITH ARMY OF THE POTOMAC IN 1862
ADVENTUROUS EUROPEAN NOBLEMEN WITH ARMY OF THE POTOMAC IN 1862
RUINS OF NORFOLK NAVY YARD IN 1862
RUINS OF NORFOLK NAVY YARD IN 1862
RUINS OF NORFOLK NAVY YARD IN 1862
FLYING ARTILLERY ON ROAD TO FAIR OAKS
FLYING ARTILLERY ON ROAD TO FAIR OAKS
FLYING ARTILLERY ON ROAD TO FAIR OAKS
AFTER the evacuation of Yorktown on the fourth of May, in 1862, this picture was taken. It shows the generals of the Army of the Potomac in full uniforms after the hard siege, and at the very time when they were maneuvering to drive back the Confederates, forcing them to stand in defense of the Capital of the Confederacy—Richmond. It was through the personal friendship of Major-General McClellan that Brady was allowed to take this rare photograph. The warriors lined up in front of the camera on the field at Yorktown. In the center is General McClellan—a man in whose veins flowed the blood of Scotch cautiousness—"Be sure you're right, then go ahead!" He was but thirty-six years of age when he held the great army under his control. From boyhood he had been a military tactician. When twenty years old he was graduated from West Point, standing second in his class, and distinguished himself for gallantry in the Mexican War. Six years before the outbreak of the Civil War, when only thirty years old, McClellan was in Crimea and two years later he submitted his report to the Government and resigned from the army to become vice-president and chief engineer of the Illinois Central Railroad. In 1860, he was general superintendent of the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad. When the call swept across the continent for troops to preserve the Nation, the old war spirit was aroused and McClellan was one of the first to respond.
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT YORKTOWN OF MCCLELLAN AND HIS OFFICERS IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT YORKTOWN OF MCCLELLAN AND HIS OFFICERS IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT YORKTOWN OF MCCLELLAN AND HIS OFFICERS IN 1862
BRADY'S cameras took an active part in the campaign about Richmond, the Capital of the Confederacy. Four of the old negatives are here reproduced. The first is a view of light field-works on the Chickahominy, near Fair Oaks. The men are at the guns ready to receive the attack and the infantry are hurrying into line on the right and left of the battery. The second photograph is where the battle raged hottest in June, 1862. In the rear of the battery of howitzers in the foreground, is the left of Sickle's brigade in line of battle. Near the twin houses, seen still further in the rear, the bodies of over 400 Union soldiers were buried after the battle. The Confederate loss was 7,997 men killed, wounded and missing; the Union loss, 5,739. The headquarters of the army, at the opening of the seven days' fight, was at Savage Station, where vast amounts of rations, forage, ammunition and hospital stores were distributed for the use of the troops. This station fell into the hands of the enemy together with many of our sick and wounded soldiers during the seven days' battles. One of these views gives a glimpse of the field hospital at Savage Station during the battle. The wounded were brought in by the hundreds and laid on the ground and the surgeons may be seen leaning over them. During the Peninsula Campaign in 1862, the army balloon was a valuable aid in the signal service. This view shows Professor T. S. C. Lowe in his balloon watching the battle of Fair Oaks. He can easily discern the movements of the enemy's troops and give warning to the generals. The balloon rises to the desired elevation and is anchored to a tree.
ARTILLERY IN LINE AT FAIR OAKS IN 1862
ARTILLERY IN LINE AT FAIR OAKS IN 1862
ARTILLERY IN LINE AT FAIR OAKS IN 1862
BATTERY OF HOWITZERS IN BATTLE OF FAIR OAKS
BATTERY OF HOWITZERS IN BATTLE OF FAIR OAKS
BATTERY OF HOWITZERS IN BATTLE OF FAIR OAKS
WATCHING BATTLE OF FAIR OAKS FROM BALLOON
WATCHING BATTLE OF FAIR OAKS FROM BALLOON
WATCHING BATTLE OF FAIR OAKS FROM BALLOON
THE WOUNDED AT SAVAGE STATION AFTER THE BATTLE
THE WOUNDED AT SAVAGE STATION AFTER THE BATTLE
THE WOUNDED AT SAVAGE STATION AFTER THE BATTLE
DESPERATE battles day and night crimsoned the fields in the siege about Richmond. McClellan called for reinforcements to force his way into the city, but they failed to arrive. So dismayed was he that he sent this warning to Stanton at Washington: "If I save this army now, I tell you plainly that I owe no thanks to you, or any other person in Washington." This photograph shows the Grapevine Bridge on the Chickahominy over which McClellan passed his army. This bridge was built by the 15th New York Engineer Corps. All the supplies that could be taken in the wagon trains were hurried over Grapevine Bridge and the remainder were burned or abandoned. Hundreds of artillery charges were opened. Powder was scattered over the pile and barrels of oil poured on. At Savage Station a railroad train loaded with ammunition was set on fire, then sent, with the locomotive throttle wide open, to plunge from the broken tracks into the river, each car exploding as it reached the surface of the stream. Grapevine Bridge was destroyed and Jackson held away from the Battle of Gaines' Mill, which undoubtedly saved the Army of the Potomac from capture. Through Mechanicville, Gaines' Mill, Savage Station, Peach Orchard, White Oak Swamp and Malvern Hill the Union soldiers fought their way from the twenty-sixth of June to the first of July, finally escaping to Harrison's Landing on the James River after a loss of 15,249 men. The Confederates had beaten them back from Richmond at a cost of 17,583 men. McClellan set up his base of operations at Harrison's Landing and remained a menace to Richmond.
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT GRAPEVINE BRIDGE OVER THE CHICKAHOMINY
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT GRAPEVINE BRIDGE OVER THE CHICKAHOMINY
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT GRAPEVINE BRIDGE OVER THE CHICKAHOMINY
BRILLIANT strokes came like flashes of lightning. With McClellan still setting his heart on taking Richmond, "Stonewall" Jackson was making threatening moves towards Washington. Demonstrations were begun to plant fear in the Government and cause sufficient alarm to order the withdrawal of McClellan to the defense of Washington. This daring ruse was successful inasmuch as it completely upset the plans to take Richmond, and the seat of battle was almost instantly transferred to the North. There was no denying it; Washington stood in abject fear of the brilliant Jackson. His presence in the vicinity of the National Capital caused much uneasiness. The stand against him came at Cedar Mountain, known from its hard fight as Slaughter Mountain, on the ninth of August, 1862. At a cost of about 1,400 men, the Union army frustrated Jackson and depleted his forces to the extent of 1,307. Brady's cameras were with the army at Cedar Mountain. The first photograph was taken just as one of the batteries was fording a tributary of the Rappahannock. Another picture was taken of the Union camp on the battlefield. The Confederate general, Charles S. Winder, was struck by a shell while leading his division on the field. He was taken to the house shown in one of these photographs where he died. The marks of the shells can easily be seen in the roof. It was about this time, at Harrison's Landing, that Brady met the famous Irish Brigade which was then fighting in the defense of Washington, under Brigadier-General Thomas Francis Meagher, who had taken prominent part in a recent rebellion in Ireland. A group of officers of the sturdy Irish Brigade sat before one of Brady's cameras. The charges of this brigade are among the most daring in warfare.
OFFICERS OF IRISH BRIGADE AT HARRISON'S LANDING IN 1862
OFFICERS OF IRISH BRIGADE AT HARRISON'S LANDING IN 1862
OFFICERS OF IRISH BRIGADE AT HARRISON'S LANDING IN 1862
HOUSE AT CEDAR MOUNTAIN WHERE GENERAL WINDER DIED
HOUSE AT CEDAR MOUNTAIN WHERE GENERAL WINDER DIED
HOUSE AT CEDAR MOUNTAIN WHERE GENERAL WINDER DIED
CAMP AND BATTLEFIELD ON CEDAR MOUNTAIN IN 1862
CAMP AND BATTLEFIELD ON CEDAR MOUNTAIN IN 1862
CAMP AND BATTLEFIELD ON CEDAR MOUNTAIN IN 1862
BATTERY FORDING STREAM NEAR CEDAR MOUNTAIN IN 1862
BATTERY FORDING STREAM NEAR CEDAR MOUNTAIN IN 1862
BATTERY FORDING STREAM NEAR CEDAR MOUNTAIN IN 1862
ONE hundred and sixty thousand men fought in the Union lines in the Peninsula campaign. When Lincoln reviewed the army at Harrison's Landing, in 1862, he saw only eighty-six thousand men. The remainder had been removed by casualties on the field or disease. Fifty thousand had fallen victims to fever or malaria. The president and his cabinet were dissatisfied with the conditions and General Henry Wager Halleck, who had been showing much ability in the West, was summoned to Washington and appointed commander-in-chief. McClellan was practically deposed from the Potomac. The Army of Virginia, under command of General John Pope, was instructed to cover Washington and guard the Shenandoah entrance to Maryland. In taking command of this division, Pope said to his men: "I have come to you from the West, where we have always seen the backs of our enemies." The Confederates were mapping routes on a large scale. Bragg was to advance on Louisville and Cincinnati; Lee was to invade Maryland and march upon Washington, Baltimore and Philadelphia. The capture of these three cities was to assure the Independence of the Confederacy. Lee had 150,000 men and two-thirds of them were to be taken on this invasion. This is the scheme that was being worked out when the two armies met on the thirtieth day of August at Manassas. The Confederate troops poured onto the Federal lines and forced them back beyond Bull Run until the darkness of the night stopped the pursuit. Bridges were burned and railroads destroyed by the Union Army as they withdrew toward Washington, making brave stands to hold back the enemy, only to be driven back to the banks of the Potomac with 7,800 missing and dead, while the Confederate lines had 3,700 vacancies.
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN BEHIND CONFEDERATE FORTIFICATIONS AT MANASSAS IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN BEHIND CONFEDERATE FORTIFICATIONS AT MANASSAS IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN BEHIND CONFEDERATE FORTIFICATIONS AT MANASSAS IN 1862
GENERAL IRVIN MCDOWELL AND OFFICERS IN 1862
GENERAL IRVIN MCDOWELL AND OFFICERS IN 1862
GENERAL IRVIN MCDOWELL AND OFFICERS IN 1862
RUINED BRIDGE AT MANASSAS
RUINED BRIDGE AT MANASSAS
RUINED BRIDGE AT MANASSAS
CONSTERNATION was caused in Washington by the terrible slaughter at Manassas, on the thirtieth of August, in 1862. The Federal Army was driven from the Virginia valley. The mighty Confederate generals Lee, Jackson, and Longstreet, renewed their hopes of entering the National Capital and pushing into Pennsylvania and Maryland, and as one enthusiastic Southerner exclaimed: "The Confederate flag will yet wave over Faneuil Hall in Boston." It was but thirteen months since the Union Army met a fearful defeat along this same stream of Bull Run. After a three weeks' campaign, the Federals, under Major-General John Pope, were forced to retire and hastened to the defense of Washington which they believed to be in instant danger of attack. It was in a volley of heavy fire that General Phil Kearney fell dead from his saddle. Kearney and Lee had been personal friends before the war and Lee sent the body of his old friend back to the Union headquarters under a flag of truce. During this campaign, Brady secured an excellent photograph of Major-General Irvin McDowell and staff, who had been in the first battle of Bull Run and now commanded the Third Army Corps. He also made the acquaintance of General Robert E. Lee, who had assumed command of the Confederate Army in Virginia in the second battle, two months before. Standing at Lee's right is Major-General G. W. C. Lee and on his left Colonel Walter Taylor of the Confederates.
GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE AT MANASSAS
GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE AT MANASSAS
GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE AT MANASSAS
TIRED and hungry, the Federal soldiers were driven from the Virginia Valley. The cutting off of supplies had placed them in a precarious condition. There was nothing left for them to do but retreat to the nearest provisions. Even the 4,000 horses in the cavalry were so broken down and footsore that not more than 500 of them were fit for riding. The only considerable depot of supplies was at Manassas Junction and it had fallen into the hands of the Confederates. A strong body of cavalry under "Jeb" Stuart, with 500 infantry, had raided it during the night three days before the battle. These stores were destroyed by the Confederates as a safer way to force back the Federals by starvation. While they brought little succor to the rank and file of the Confederate army they left the Union soldiers without food. One of Brady's cameras reached Manassas Junction shortly after the destruction and this is the negative that was taken. The railroad train is wrecked, the engine is derailed, and the cars have been looted. 50,000 pounds of bacon, 1,000 barrels of corned beef, 2,000 barrels of salt pork, 2,000 barrels of flour, two train loads with stores and clothing, large quantities of forage, 42 wagons and ambulances, 200 tents, 300 prisoners, 200 negroes, eight pieces of artillery with their horses and equipments, and 175 horses other than those belonging to the artillery fell into the possession of the enemy. Immense quantities of quartermasters' and commissaries' stores were burned. Only rations enough for a single day were saved by the captors. The conflict was too hot and the action too swift to allow carrying them along on the movement into the North. With these provisions gone the Union army was in dire want.
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT RUINS OF MANASSAS JUNCTION, VIRGINIA, IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT RUINS OF MANASSAS JUNCTION, VIRGINIA, IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT RUINS OF MANASSAS JUNCTION, VIRGINIA, IN 1862
THE pursuit by the Confederates toward the very gates of Washington, after the route of the Union army along Bull Run, was stopped only by the thoughtfulness of the retreating Federals in destroying their bridges. Lee, in his report after the battle, says: "After a fierce combat, which raged until after nine o'clock, Pope's Union Army was completely defeated and driven beyond Bull Run. The darkness of the night, his destruction of the Stone Bridge after crossing, and the uncertainty of the fords, stopped the pursuit." This photograph is an actual verification of the truth of Lee's excuse. Brady arrived on the following day and this picture shows the ruins as he found them. It would have been foolhardy for an army in the blackness of night to have attempted to tramp through wreckage, the extent of which they knew nothing, and water the depth of which was questionable. Bull Run was a treacherous stream with its rocks and holes. Moreover, the Confederate soldiers, after the fearful struggle through which they had passed, were not in a condition to travel through the night in drenched and mud-soaked clothing. The Union forces at the fierce battle of Manassas were: Army of Virginia, under Pope—1st Corps under Major-General Franz Sigel; Third Corps under Major-General Irvin McDowell; Second Corps under Major-General Nathaniel P. Banks; Army of the Potomac—Third Corps under Major-General S. P. Heintzelman; Fifth Corps under Major-General Fitz John Porter; Ninth Corps under Major-General Jesse L. Reno.
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT RUINS OF STONE BRIDGE OVER BULL RUN IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT RUINS OF STONE BRIDGE OVER BULL RUN IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT RUINS OF STONE BRIDGE OVER BULL RUN IN 1862
THE DEAD ALONG HAGERSTOWN ROAD AFTER BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
THE DEAD ALONG HAGERSTOWN ROAD AFTER BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
THE DEAD ALONG HAGERSTOWN ROAD AFTER BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
SIGNAL CORPS WATCHING BATTLE FROM HILLSIDE AT ANTIETAM
SIGNAL CORPS WATCHING BATTLE FROM HILLSIDE AT ANTIETAM
SIGNAL CORPS WATCHING BATTLE FROM HILLSIDE AT ANTIETAM
THRILLED with the victory at Manassas, the second Bull Run, the leader of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis, ordered an immediate movement to the North with all the chances of glorious triumph in his favor. It was conceded even by the military tacticians of the Government that Lee could march to Washington with probabilities of entrance. He was aware that a direct attack was feasible, but he desired to cross the Potomac into Maryland and enter the National Capital from the north, thus giving him a free route to the great municipalities of the North. It is probable that he even had visions of the capture of New York. While developing this military stratagem he met the Federals in the open at Antietam. It was the seventeenth of September in 1862. General McClellan was in command and Lee's fondest dreams were blasted. The men of both armies fought as they never fought before. Brady's cameras were soon on the scene and secured many negatives of this bloody day. The one above reveals the west side of Hagerstown Road after the battle. The bodies of the dead are strewn thickly beside the fence, just as they fell. The guns succeeded in getting an excellent range of this road, and slaughtered the enemy like sheep. This view of some of the men just as they fell, is only a glimpse of many groups of dead in that terrible combat. Brady "caught" the Independent Pennsylvania Battery E, well known as Knapp's Battery, shortly after the battle.
ARTILLERY AFTER THE BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
ARTILLERY AFTER THE BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
ARTILLERY AFTER THE BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
THIS is believed to be the first photograph ever taken of armies in battle on the Western Continent. The historic negative was taken from the hill overlooking the battle of Antietam. It shows the artillery in terrific conflict and the fire belching from the cannon's mouth. The clouds of smoke rising from the valley tell the fearful story of that seventeenth day of September, in 1862, when 25,899 Confederates were killed, wounded and captured at the cost of 12,469 Union men. On the left of the lines stand the reserve artillery waiting for the call to action. One can almost hear the voice of "Little Mac" urging his men on to victory. The defeat at Manassas, and the destruction of Pope's trains, with the hot haste in which the troops had passed through Washington, gave no time for the issuance of shoes, socks or other necessaries. The men who had tramped through the Chickahominy swamps and down the Virginia Valley were ragged and bleeding, but when the order rose above the tumult: "Give ground to the right," a mighty cheer swept along the lines as a cavalry of horsemen galloped madly to the front, for the men in the ranks knew that McClellan was coming. There was not a man at Antietam who did not know that it was a last desperate chance to thwart the great Lee from marching on to Washington, and possibly Baltimore and Philadelphia. The people in the North eagerly awaited the news. The National Capital was almost in a state of panic. It was the hardest fought and bloodiest single day's battle of the war and more men were killed than in any single day's fight during the conflict.
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN DURING THE BATTLE OF ANTIETAM IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN DURING THE BATTLE OF ANTIETAM IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN DURING THE BATTLE OF ANTIETAM IN 1862
SCOUTS AND GUIDES WITH THE ARMY OF THE POTOMAC
SCOUTS AND GUIDES WITH THE ARMY OF THE POTOMAC
SCOUTS AND GUIDES WITH THE ARMY OF THE POTOMAC
GENERAL JOSEPH HOOKER AND HIS FAVORITE HORSE AT ANTIETAM
GENERAL JOSEPH HOOKER AND HIS FAVORITE HORSE AT ANTIETAM
GENERAL JOSEPH HOOKER AND HIS FAVORITE HORSE AT ANTIETAM
PICKETS IN THE LEAD OF THE ARMY IN 1862
PICKETS IN THE LEAD OF THE ARMY IN 1862
PICKETS IN THE LEAD OF THE ARMY IN 1862
THE scouts and guides of the Civil War saved the armies from many defeats by their shrewdness and bravery. Upon them rested the great responsibility of leading the soldiers through the unknown country to advantageous and safe positions. During the Peninsula campaign in 1862 a group of these men sat before one of Brady's cameras. A photograph was also secured at a reserve picket station near the Potomac. The advance picket was a short distance ahead and upon the approach of the enemy began firing, and gradually fell back on these reserves, who keep up a continuous fire as they retire slowly, fighting as they go, giving time for the army to form into line for battle. About this same time an excellent picture was secured of "Fighting Joe" Hooker standing beside his horse. Hooker was seriously wounded at Antietam and borne from the field. Still another photograph shown here is the "Sunken Road" or "Bloody Lane" at Antietam, in which the Confederate dead lay three deep for a distance of half a mile. This ditch was used by the Confederates as a rifle pit. A Union battery succeeded in getting an excellent range of the road and this view, taken the day after the battle, shows the dead just as they fell. It is a scene of slaughter that few men have ever seen and its horrors are here preserved in detail by the camera.
DEAD IN SUNKEN ROAD AFTER BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
DEAD IN SUNKEN ROAD AFTER BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
DEAD IN SUNKEN ROAD AFTER BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
STONEWALL JACKSON, in speaking of the battle of Antietam, said: "The carnage on both sides was terrific. The hottest fight seemed to center about Dunker Church, where there were no less than four charges and counter-charges. Each army had taken and retaken the ground until it was literally carpeted with dead and dying men." The Confederates posted a battery of light artillery outside of the little building used for religious services by the sect known as the Dunkers. This photograph shows where one gun of the battery stood. The dead artillerymen and horses, and the shell-holes through the little church, prove how terrible a fire was rained onto this spot by the Union batteries. Another view on this page shows the dead collected for burial after the battle of Antietam. The wounded were taken from the battlefield to an improvised hospital which consisted of canvas stretched over stakes driven into the ground. A view is here given of one of these hospitals in which wounded Confederate prisoners are being relieved of their suffering. One of the most interesting of these photographs is Burnside Bridge. With fixed bayonets the Union soldiers started on their mission of death, rushing over the slope leading to the bridge, and engaging in fierce combat with the enemy. The fire that swept it was more than they could stand and they were obliged to retire. Two heavy guns were placed in position and aimed upon the Confederates. In a maddening charge, the bayonets again flashed in the light and the Union soldiers swept everything before them, planting the Stars and Stripes on the opposite bank. Five hundred of their men lay dead behind them. By this time Burnside had crossed the stream and after a quick encounter the battle was ended with both armies severely punished and neither inclined to resume the fight.
BURNSIDE BRIDGE AT ANTIETAM IN 1862
BURNSIDE BRIDGE AT ANTIETAM IN 1862
BURNSIDE BRIDGE AT ANTIETAM IN 1862
THE DEAD COLLECTED FOR BURIAL AFTER BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
THE DEAD COLLECTED FOR BURIAL AFTER BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
THE DEAD COLLECTED FOR BURIAL AFTER BATTLE OF ANTIETAM
FIELD HOSPITAL AT ANTIETAM BATTLEFIELD IN 1862
FIELD HOSPITAL AT ANTIETAM BATTLEFIELD IN 1862
FIELD HOSPITAL AT ANTIETAM BATTLEFIELD IN 1862
DEAD ARTILLERYMEN AT DUNKER'S CHURCH, ANTIETAM
DEAD ARTILLERYMEN AT DUNKER'S CHURCH, ANTIETAM
DEAD ARTILLERYMEN AT DUNKER'S CHURCH, ANTIETAM
THE last echo of the guns of Antietam had hardly died away when the great Lincoln and the cautious McClellan stood literally at swords' points at the very instant when the Confederacy was repulsed and weakened. Lincoln was positive that this was the opportune moment to take the offensive and drive the Confederates into the South. McClellan insisted that his soldiers were suffering; that they needed shoes and supplies; that the cavalry horses were fatigued. He felt that the Government had been saved by his men and that the administration should now provide them with proper clothing and food before they plunged again into the wilderness. President Lincoln hurried to the battlefield of Antietam on the first of October, in 1862, to learn the real condition. While the president and "Little Mac" were seated in General McClellan's tent about noon on the third of October, with maps and plans on the table before them, discussing the situation, Lincoln submitted to having this photograph taken. The silk hat of the president lies on the table over which is thrown an American flag. It is a remarkable likeness of the great American and the negative is treasured as one of the most valuable contributions to our National records. In speaking of this visit, McClellan said: "We spent some time on the battlefield and conversed fully on the state of affairs. He told me that he was entirely satisfied with me and with all that I had done; that he would stand by me. He parted from me with the utmost cordiality. We never met again on this earth." On the following morning Lincoln returned to Washington. Two days later McClellan received an order from Washington to immediately move onto the enemy and engage them in battle. The breach between the two men was now irreparable. McClellan believed that it was the influence of Stanton whom he had accused of working deliberately against him. It was nineteen days before he began the movement and on the fifth of November, Lincoln issued this order: "By direction of the president it is ordered that Major-General McClellan be relieved from the command of the Army of the Potomac, and that Major-General Burnside take command of that army."
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE LINCOLN WAS CONFERRING WITH McCLELLAN ON BATTLEFIELD OF ANTIETAM
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE LINCOLN WAS CONFERRING WITH McCLELLAN ON BATTLEFIELD OF ANTIETAM
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE LINCOLN WAS CONFERRING WITH McCLELLAN ON BATTLEFIELD OF ANTIETAM
WHEN Lincoln visited the battlefield of Antietam, he was accompanied by Allan Pinkerton, chief of the Secret Service, known under the alias of Major Allen. On the morning of the third of October, 1862, when he was leaving McClellan's tent to look over the army in camp, he again stood before one of the war cameras and this rare photograph is the witness. Comparatively few of this generation have any clear idea of how the real Lincoln looked as he passed through the heart-rending ordeal from 1861 to 1865. This photograph shows him in his characteristic attitude. At his right stands Pinkerton, one of the shrewdest detectives that the world has produced. The officer in uniform is Major John A. McClernand, who was appointed to command the Army of the West and fought at Fort Donelson, Shiloh and Vicksburg, but who was in the East at this time. From Lincoln's visit resulted McClellan's deposal. Never before or since has such a scene been witnessed in any army as the one when McClellan took leave of his officers and soldiers. Seated on a magnificent steed, at the head of his brilliant staff, he rode down the lines, lifting his cap as the regimental colors fell into salute. Whole regiments dropped their muskets to cheer their hero. The tears came to McClellan's eyes and the vast army shook with emotion. As he was boarding the train troops fired a salute. Impassioned soldiers wildly insisted that he should not leave them, and uttered bitter imprecations against those who had deprived them of their beloved commander. It was a moment of fearful excitement. A word, or a look of encouragement, would have been the signal for a revolt, the consequences of which no man can measure. McClellan stepped to the platform of the car. He spoke slowly but appealingly: "Stand by General Burnside as you have stood by me, and all will be well!" A calm fell over the soldiers and they bade farewell to their idolized commander. McClellan, upon reaching Washington, remained less than an hour and proceeded at once to Trenton. From that time he never again saw Lincoln, or Stanton, or Halleck.
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE LINCOLN WAS PASSING THROUGH CAMP AT ANTIETAM IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE LINCOLN WAS PASSING THROUGH CAMP AT ANTIETAM IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE LINCOLN WAS PASSING THROUGH CAMP AT ANTIETAM IN 1862
A FEW days after Burnside replaced McClellan in command of the Army of the Potomac, this photograph was taken while he was with his staff at Warrenton, Virginia, in the middle of November, in 1862. Burnside is here seen in the midst of his officers, with one hand characteristically tucked into his coat and the other holding a written military order. Burnside was a graduate of West Point and when twenty-four years old helped to take the Capital in the Mexican War. He had also been an Indian fighter and during those days made a journey of over a thousand miles across the plains in seventeen days, accompanied by only three men, to carry dispatches to President Filmore. At twenty-nine years of age he resigned from the United States Army and invented the Burnside rifle. He was one of McClellan's intimate friends, and while a civilian he was engaged with him on the Illinois Central Railroad. Burnside was in New York when the Civil War broke out and hurried to the front in command of the First Rhode Island Volunteers. He fought at the first battle of Bull Run and commanded an expedition that stormed the North Carolina coast. He was in the famous Battle of Roanoke Island and Newbern and as a reward for these successes he was given the rank of major-general. He later fought the Battle of Camden, attacked and reduced Fort Macon, and during the Peninsula Campaign fought at the Battle of South Mountain and Antietam. When Lincoln first offered Burnside the command held by McClellan it is said that he refused it three times. Not until he knew that his friend must go did he concede to the wishes of the president. When Burnside took command of the Union forces he was but thirty-nine years old, but an experienced warrior.
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE MAJOR-GENERAL AMBROSE E. BURNSIDE WAS ENCAMPED WITH HIS STAFF IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE MAJOR-GENERAL AMBROSE E. BURNSIDE WAS ENCAMPED WITH HIS STAFF IN 1862
PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE MAJOR-GENERAL AMBROSE E. BURNSIDE WAS ENCAMPED WITH HIS STAFF IN 1862
GENERAL EDWIN V. SUMNER AND STAFF IN PENINSULA CAMPAIGN IN 1862
GENERAL EDWIN V. SUMNER AND STAFF IN PENINSULA CAMPAIGN IN 1862
GENERAL EDWIN V. SUMNER AND STAFF IN PENINSULA CAMPAIGN IN 1862
SHORTLY after the battle of Antietam this photograph was taken of General Sumner, who was distinguished for gallantry on that bloody field. Sumner is seen standing on the steps in the center of a group of officers. At this time he was a warrior sixty-six years of age and had seen a long life of hard fighting. He was born during the first days of the American Republic, in the year 1796. When twenty-three years old he became a second lieutenant in the United States Infantry and served with distinction during the Black Hawk War. He later had command of a cavalry school and at the outbreak of the Mexican War he led an attack against five thousand lancers and was breveted colonel. With the cessation of this conflict he took charge of the Department of New Mexico, and was later ordered to Europe on official business. Upon his return he entered into border warfare and defeated the Cheyenne Indians. When Lincoln was elected president, Sumner was selected to accompany him from Springfield to Washington and was promoted brigadier-general. Sumner was active in the Peninsula Campaign and was promoted to major-general. He fought through the Maryland Campaign, and at Antietam his corps made one of the fiercest charges over the field, carrying destruction and death. He commanded the right wing at the battle of Fredericksburg and was ordered to the West, but while preparing to depart he died suddenly.
WHILE the campaigns against Richmond and Washington were being waged, hard fighting was taking place in the Southwest. Grant was in command of the Army of the Tennessee. Buell was near Chattanooga, facing Bragg who threatened Louisville. Rosecranz was at the head of the Army of the Mississippi and occupied Alabama and Northern Mississippi. Terrific engagements had taken place at Fort Donelson and Shiloh, Tennessee. The Guerilla Campaign was being waged in Missouri. There were frequent clashes in Kentucky and Arkansas, but Mississippi seemed to be the battle-ground. Corinth, in that state, was considered the military key to Tennessee. It was in the conflict for the control of this coveted position that the Confederates made one of their bravest charges. A photograph is here shown of Fort Robinette which was protected by Federal guns. The Southerners charged almost to the cannon's mouth, only to be swept back by the murderous shower of lead. The second charge stands as a wonderful example of human courage. Colonel Rogers of Texas, led the column, and scaled the breastwork, falling inside. Three charges were made, but the Confederates were finally forced to retreat. The Federal loss at this battle of Corinth in killed, wounded and missing was 2,359; the Confederates left behind them 9,423.