Portrait of William Henry Seward, circa 1860

THF210599 / Portrait of William Henry Seward, circa 1860
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Artifact Overview

William Henry Seward, Abraham Lincoln's Secretary of State, posed for this carte-de-visite in New York City around 1860. The carte-de-visite was a small photographic print on cardboard stock made by professional photographers. People exchanged and collected portrait cartes-de-visite, popular in the United States from the Civil War in the 1860s through the 1880s, to help them remember family and celebrities.

Artifact Details

Artifact

Carte-de-visite (Card photograph)

Date Made

22 August 1864

Subject Date

circa 1860

Location

By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center

Object ID

66.143.24

Credit

From the Collections of The Henry Ford.

Material

Cardboard
Paper (Fiber product)

Technique

Albumen process

Color

Black-and-white (Colors)

Dimensions

Height: 4 in
Width: 2.375 in

Inscriptions

Printed on back: Published by / E.& H.T. ANTHONY / 501 B''WAY / NEW YORK (additional wording covered by sticker) Sticker with gold border adhered to back, written in pencil reads: 36. Hon. William / H. Seward Blue tax stamp dated Aug 22 1864
Portrait of William Henry Seward, circa 1860