Similar
Related
![Group of convicts ready to embark on a prison barge, Tiumin [i.e., T i umen]̦](https://cache.getarchive.net/Prod/thumb/cdn4/L3Bob3RvLzIwMTkvMDkvMjcvZ3JvdXAtb2YtY29udmljdHMtcmVhZHktdG8tZW1iYXJrLW9uLWEtcHJpc29uLWJhcmdlLXRpdW1pbi1pZS10LWktdW1lbi04YmJhMmUtNjQwLmpwZw%3D%3D/40/32/webp "Group of convicts ready to embark on a prison barge, Tiumin [i.e., T i umen]̦")
Group of Union officers who escaped from Confed. prison at Columbia, S.C., in the fall of '64 also three guides procured in the mountains of Tennessee
Summary
Photograph shows group portrait of former prisoners of war and guides taken upon their arrival at Knoxville, Tennessee, on January 1, 1865. Three of the prisoners of war, Capt. Mark M. Bassett of Co. E, 53rd Illinois Infantry Regiment, Lieutenant Thomas P. Young and Alfred S. Stewart of Co. A, 4th Kentucky Infantry Regiment, escaped from Columbia, S.C., on November 10, 1864. Major William Stanhope Marshall of Co. E, 5th Iowa Infantry Regiment, escaped from Columbia, S.C., on November 28, 1864. Lieutenant Michael Hoffman of Co. D, 5th Iowa Infantry Regiment, was a prisoner at Columbia, S.C., but his escape date is unknown. Lieutenant John McAdams of Co. G, 10th West Virginia Infantry Regiment, was a prisoner at Columbia, S.C., but his escape date is also unknown. Three of the prisoners of war, partially identified as Capt. Dobbs, Fowler, and Page had escaped at other times and joined the group in the mountains. Guides were Confederate deserters Private David Ledford, Private Joseph Fleming ("Joe Flem") Cisson (also spelled Cison) of Co. F, 2nd North Carolina Infantry Regiment, and a boy labeled Tom Zachary who was 14 years old.
Title from card found with item.
Caption from card continued (verso): "1 & 7 & 8 - M.M. Bassett, T.P. Young & A.S. Stuart who with 6 others (not here) escaped from Columbia S.C. by running the guard at 2 o'clock a.m. Nov. 10/64. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, & 9 are W.S. Marshall, Dobbs, Fowler, M. Hoffman, Page & McAdams, all officers who had escaped at other times and got with 1, 7 & 8 in the mountains of N.C. 10, 11 & 12 are guides procured in the mountains. 11 a boy & 10 & 12 rebel deserters. This picture was taken on arrival at Knoxville, Tenn. Jany. 1/65 after 52 nights out by 1, 7 & 8. When the others escaped is not known now."
Another copy of this photograph in the Chicago Historical Society is identified as: "Group of Confederate prisoners at Camp Douglas, Chicago, Ill., 1864. This prison was located just north of Douglas University, Cottage Grove Ave."
Gift; Louise S. Ernst; 1944.
Accession box no. DLC/PP-1944:132
There are not many details distinguishing the Confederates from the Union soldiers in many of portrait photographs - they really were from the same country, the same culture. One of the differences that you do find is the less uniform appearance of Confederates: they are much less standard, often wearing bits and pieces of cast-off Union Army uniforms and often, even weaponry. One thing that’s specific to the Confederates is huge Bowie knives, humorously called ‘Arkansas toothpicks,’ often made by local blacksmiths.
The single best source for Civil War photographs is the U.S. Library of Congress, which holds the core collections of original Civil War documentary ... The majority of the ambrotypes and tintypes are portraits by unidentified photographers of Civil War soldiers, primarily Union soldiers.
Tags
Date
Location
Source
Copyright info
