Union Army Captain William Colburn (in 1st Lieutenant Uniform), 1861

THF211706 / Union Army Captain William Colburn (in 1st Lieutenant Uniform), 1861
01

Artifact Overview

J.E. McClees of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, made this bust portrait of Union Army infantry officer William Colburn. Professional photographers made cartes-de-visite beginning in the 1860s. Mounted on small cardboard stock, these early photographic prints proved popular in the United States from the Civil War through the 1880s. Americans exchanged and collected CdVs to help them remember family and celebrities.

Artifact Details

Artifact

Carte-de-visite (Card photograph)

Date Made

1861

Subject Date

1861

Location

By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center

Object ID

2008.0.12.8

Credit

From the Collections of The Henry Ford.

Material

Cardboard
Paper (Fiber product)

Technique

Albumen process
Mounting

Color

Black-and-white (Colors)

Dimensions

Height: 4 in
Width: 2.375 in

Inscriptions

Photographer imprint on back of image reads: J.E. McCLEES / ARTIST/ 910 Chestnut Street / PHILADELPHIA Handwritten in ink on front lower edge: Capt. Wm. Colburn Handwritten in ink on back: S O C / 1861