"Do you take this cavalryperson to be your lawfully wedded pard?"  Looks like there may be some heavy duty spooning going on here!

Aw, stop it! That kind of thing is extremely common in photos from the period.

Quote :

GrumpyDave wrote : Aw, stop it! That kind of thing is extremely common in photos from the period.

Grumpy,

I just couldn't resist.

Cav Officer:
 

--Last edited by grumpydave on 2007-06-23 18:12:22 --

Buddies?


Look how he has his hand on his hip?


Pals?


More than friends? LOL just for you Bill!


Things were different in the 19th century. Yep, they were.

Grumpy,

Swish, swish, swish, the boys are prancing off to war!    

--Last edited by Bill on 2007-06-27 17:09:27 --

Having the pinky pointing straight forward while holding a sizeable handgun is kinda hard to do.

I'd be a litttle concerned, if I was that guy on the left; who has the pistol aimed at the top of his head.  

....and another thing about that guy on the left.  With all of those little biddy buttons it is a safe guess he does not have arthritic fingers.

Looks like to me the guy sitting is being forced to have a likeness made.  I would sit there too with a pistol to my head.  

A lot of interesting stuff in this picture. Only two of the five guys seem to be wearing standard military jackets. The fellow holding the pistol seems to have big rubber buttons on his coat. Notice the placement of the buttons on the coat worn by the poor guy being held against his will. Finally, the fellow sitting in the center, holding hands with the man behind him, seems to have exposed metal buttons on his trousers, rather than a normal fly.

Quote :

Bill wrote :  Finally, the fellow sitting in the center, holding hands with the man behind him, seems to have exposed metal buttons on his trousers, rather than a normal fly.

In looking at this photo some more, it looks like the gentlemen is just slouching in his chair and is actually wearing a vest that exactly matches his trousers.

Grumpy,
Do you have any more info on the cav officer photo? I'd like to try and track down a better scan if the image. Looking at his tack, I cant tell what type of bit and bridle he is using. It looks as if the bridle is very small and possibly using a dragoon or bridoon bit. It could also be some sort of martingale but I cant tell for sure.

Dave

I pulled the photo off of e-bay. That's as good as it gets.

The two guys on top, questioned to be chasseurs, are actually privates in a British Empire rifle volunteer battalion, probably in the UK but possibly in Canada. The volunteer rifle movement began in England around the same time as the start of the American Civil War and rifle volunteers are often confused with American volunteers.  Vol. I, No. 1 of Military Images did an article on the subject.

The top image of the two guys shows a pair of British Rifle Volunteers. They are probably from Britain, although they could be from Canada which also developed Rifle Volunteer units in the 1860s. Military Images had an article on Rifle Volunteers in its Vol. 1, No. 1

Philip,

Welcome aboard and thanks for the clarification.  Your knowledge is going to be a welcome addition around here.

Confederate? Post war? Backmark is Fayetteville, Arkansas.


Period postcard:


Federal Corporal:


Period postcard number two:


All dressed up:


Rain cover on his hat:

The first colored infantryman Ii have added to my collection.


Colorized Cavalryman:


Custer and Pleasonton(At least the poor sod in the middle got his picture taken.):


Federal Private:


"Old Abe" the War Eagle:


Check out all of the gold added to this photo. I wonder if this jacket had shoulder scale attachments?
 

--Last edited by grumpydave on 2007-07-27 08:07:48 --