The Library of Congress:
The Battle of Gettysburg, a major turning point in the American Civil War, was fought July 1-3, 1863. Artists, photographers, and printmakers all documented the event, using their unique talents to help people then and now understand the conflict (LOC)
The Library of Congress:
During the battle, special artists sketched action scenes for publication in illustrated newspapers that reached a wide audience. Alfred Waud, shown here, was one of the best and drew the next two pictures while working for "Harper's Weekly" (LOC)
The Library of Congress:
On the first day, Alfred Waud showed how Union General John F. Reynolds was killed. "Mounted upon a superb black horse, with his head thrown back he was everywhere upon the field, seeing all things and giving commands in person" (LOC)
The Library of Congress:
On the second day of battle, news artist Alfred Waud portrayed a major Confederate attack by the Louisiana Tigers at Cemetery Hill (LOC)
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A photograph shows the area of the Confederate assault on Cemetery Hill not long after the Union battery repulsed the fierce attack by the Louisiana Tigers (LOC)
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The barn at Trostle's farm still stands where a Union battery held its ground at a great cost to men and horses. Photographer Timothy O’Sullivan emphasized the dead artillery horses when he reached this site on July 6th (LOC)
The Library of Congress:
"A Sharpshooter's Last Sleep." Compare the two photos of a Confederate killed at Gettysburg. Why might the photographer Alexander Gardner and his team move the body? (LOC)
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“Home of a Rebel Sharpshooter” has become an iconic representation of war. Both photos of the sharpshooter appear in "Gardner's Photographic Sketch Book of the War" (1866), but under different titles (LOC)
The Library of Congress:
A modern view from Little Round Top gives a sense of the area near Devil's Den, where photographers Alexander Gardner and Timothy O’Sullivan found the sharpshooter's body (LOC)
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On the third day of fighting, the tide turned in the Union favor when Pickett's Charge failed. The Confederate infantry assault is shown here in a print published in 1896, based on a large cyclorama painting made by Paul Philippoteaux in 1883 (LOC)
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After the battle ended, 20,000 wounded soldiers were cared for in a tent hospital at Camp Letterman. The Tyson Brothers photographed this hospital in August 1863 (LOC)
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Three "Johnnie Reb" Prisoners. Photographed by Mathew Brady's team on Seminary Ridge in mid-July, 1863, after the Battle of Gettysburg (LOC)
The Library of Congress:
Union veterans and supporters at the 50th Reunion of the battle, held in Gettysburg in 1913. The National Photo Company news service posed a striking Grand Army of the Republic group from Indiana (LOC)
The Library of Congress:
Confederate veterans at the 50th Reunion of the battle, held in Gettysburg in 1913. The National Photo Company news service posed a group from North Carolina with their Tar Heel banner (LOC)
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Gen. Sickles & Mrs. Wilmerding [at the 50th reunion for the Battle of Gettysburg] (LOC)
The Library of Congress:
As shown in this image by Carol M. Highsmith, the battle site and memorials at the Gettysburg National Military Park offer many vistas worth photographing (LOC)