Civil War Perspectives
The work of photographers such as Alexander Gardener, James Gibson, and Mathew Brady have immortalized the Civil War and American heroes, as their photographs have depicted the true character, emotion, and brutality that came with the American Civil War. This gallery displays many of the most famous photographs of the war in two separate collections; one a compilation of photographs showing the Northern , Union perspective of the war, and one compilation of photographs showing the Southern, Confederate side of the war. These photographs have been hand picked to best present the toll that the Civil War had on both sides, American Heroes in the war, and the world that the war created.
The first gallery is a collection of photographs that portray the North's perspective on the Civil War. The collection starts with a portrait of President Abraham Lincoln who was the President throughout the entire Civil War. He took office months before it began, and died days after it ended. As leader of the North through the war, his policies and ideas defined the Northern perspective. While the backdrop of the gallery, a photograph of the unfinished Capitol Building, which was still under construction during the Civil War, shows the North's power and confidence in the outcome of the war, other photos show the much more horrific side of the early 1860s. One photograph depicts free, Northern blacks collecting the rotted remains of dead soldiers, while another shows a nurse tending to badly injured soldiers in a makeshift military hospital. Other photos are of war heroes such as William Sherman and Ulysses Grant. The content of this collection is meant to cover everything from the North's power and stability, to the devastating toll that the war inflicted on the Union.
The second collection is a group of photos that shows the Southern Perspective of the American Civil War. The second collection starts with a portrait of Confederate President, Jefferson Davis. Like Lincoln, Davis was the President throughout the entire war, although unlike Lincoln, Davis struggled with the burden of running a nation. The collection also includes the portrait of the famous Southern General, Robert E. Lee. At the time, Lee was arguably the best General in America, and is known as one of the main reasons that the South fared as well as it did during the Civil War. In the collection are many famous Civil war photos such as "A Harvest of Death" and a photograph of Fort Sumpter under a Confederate flag shortly after being taken by the South. The background of the gallery is a photograph of Richmond, Virginia in 1861 while it was the Capitol of the Confederate States of America. This second gallery houses photos which depict the short-lived glory of the Confederate States of America to the heavy losses that the South sustained during the war.
The first gallery is a collection of photographs that portray the North's perspective on the Civil War. The collection starts with a portrait of President Abraham Lincoln who was the President throughout the entire Civil War. He took office months before it began, and died days after it ended. As leader of the North through the war, his policies and ideas defined the Northern perspective. While the backdrop of the gallery, a photograph of the unfinished Capitol Building, which was still under construction during the Civil War, shows the North's power and confidence in the outcome of the war, other photos show the much more horrific side of the early 1860s. One photograph depicts free, Northern blacks collecting the rotted remains of dead soldiers, while another shows a nurse tending to badly injured soldiers in a makeshift military hospital. Other photos are of war heroes such as William Sherman and Ulysses Grant. The content of this collection is meant to cover everything from the North's power and stability, to the devastating toll that the war inflicted on the Union.
The second collection is a group of photos that shows the Southern Perspective of the American Civil War. The second collection starts with a portrait of Confederate President, Jefferson Davis. Like Lincoln, Davis was the President throughout the entire war, although unlike Lincoln, Davis struggled with the burden of running a nation. The collection also includes the portrait of the famous Southern General, Robert E. Lee. At the time, Lee was arguably the best General in America, and is known as one of the main reasons that the South fared as well as it did during the Civil War. In the collection are many famous Civil war photos such as "A Harvest of Death" and a photograph of Fort Sumpter under a Confederate flag shortly after being taken by the South. The background of the gallery is a photograph of Richmond, Virginia in 1861 while it was the Capitol of the Confederate States of America. This second gallery houses photos which depict the short-lived glory of the Confederate States of America to the heavy losses that the South sustained during the war.
Background
Richmond Virginia during Civil War. (NARA)
Richmond Virginia during Civil War. (NARA)