Civil War Art-- Part 9: Frank Vizetelly

In relation to the North, the Confederacy had no illustrated newspapers, other than Frank Leslie's and Harper's which made it across lines. However, the London Illustrated News sent noted British war artist Frank Vizetelly, fresh from covering fighting in Italy, to North America.

He first covered the war from the North's perspective until he saw the debacle at the First Battle of Bull Run. His unfavorable drawings and description of the rout got him banned from Union lines.

He now determined to cover the war from the Southern viewpoint. With the help of Confederate sympathizers and a freed slave, he crossed the Potomac River below the capital and joined the southern army along the Rapidan River.

He took up the cause of the South. The South now had their own special artist.

--Old Secesh

Civil War Art-- Part 8: Censoring

As mentioned in the previous post where an Arthur Lumley illustration of Union troops pillaging at the Battle of Freedricksburg, both Harper and Leslie did their part to shape public opinion, sometimes censoring images they considered to be too negative or graphic.

For instance, Harper editors made Alfred Waud's drawing of a leg amputation at an Antietam field hospital to look less gory.

Another Waud sketch of exhausted horses dragging artillery carts were given lifted heads and kicking up clods of mud.

Even so, the general public was becoming aware of the horrors of war as the war progressed as a result of the illustrations.

--Old Secesh

Fletcher Pratt's "Civil War in Pictures"

Since I have been writing about the artists would brought the Civil War to the people via their illustrations, I decided to go dig out my old copy of this book, over which I spent so much time back when I was a youngster.

It is old, much smaller than I remembered and a bit dog-eared. My mother had used it in her classroom library when she taught. I see my very childish scrawl on the inside cover showing my address at the time as being at 129 North Library Street, Grenvile (well, actually Greenville as in North Carolina). That would have put me in 4th or 5th grade at that time.

My mother had also written our address through junior high, high school and even first year at college. That would be 1102 E. Anderson, Palatine, Illinois.

There are three pieces of tape holding the front and back covers together.

My copy, which I think cost me a small fortune of $5 and bought at a small mom and pop book store in Greenville (maybe) was printed by Garden City Books, Garden City, New York.

Copyright is 1955 by Fletcher Pratt, who also wrote a favorite paperback book of mine about the Civil War. I think it was called "A Short History of the Civil War."

The Garden City Books Edition was printed in 1957.

As I said a few days ago, this book was essentially a compilation of illustrations from Harper's Weekly and Frank Leslie's Illustrated Weekly Newspaper.

Hello, Old Friend. --Old Secesh

Civil War Art-- Part 5: Alfred Waud and Edwin Forbes

Alfred Waud was the most prolific special and created some of the most memorable sketches of Gettsburg and Antietam. On July 21, 1861, he traveled to the Bull Run battlefield on the wagon of his good friend, photograoher Matthew Brady. At one point he took up arms against the Confederates that day and used a pistol to deter a Union soldier trying to commandeer his horse on his return.

He had good friendships with officers which allowed him great access to battlefields, but also was prone to showing the regular soldier.

Edwin Forbes of Leslie's Illustrated was very focused on human-interest and figure study of the regular soldiers and made sketches of soldiers relaxing, cooking, cleaning, reading, shaving and doing other daily activities.

Just Regular Folk. --Old Secesh

Loved Those Illustrated Books

Growing up, one of my first Civil War books was Fletcher Pratt's Civil War in Pictures. I looked through those pictures many times and wore out my first copy. I'd even go so far as to count the soldiers in the pictures, that's how bad I was.

That book and the American Heritage Civil War were by far my two favorites. Later, when I had more money, I bought both oversized books, one featuring Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper and the other Harper's Weekly.

You couldn't get much closer to the war.

--Old Secesh

Civil War Art-- Part 4: Dominant Pictorial Weeklies

Two national pictorial weeklies dominated the national scene in 1861, both published in New York City: Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper and Harper's Weekly.

Henry Carter, known as Frank Leslie, his pen name, had managed the engraving department at the Illustrated London News, the world's first pictorial weekly. He did well after immigration to America, debuting in 1855 and with weekly publication of 100,000 copies. They claimed to be neutral in approach to the war.

Fletcher Harper, publisher of Harper's Weekly, stood firmly with Lincoln, the Republicans and abolitionists. As such, his pictorial magazine was not much liked in the South when it began in 1857. At first Harper's had been more literary than journalistic, but that changed with the coming of the war. In short time, Harper's had hired top talent, including Alfred Waud, Winslow Homer and Thomas Nast.

--Old Secesh

How Technology Shaped the Civil War-- Part 2: Prosthetic Limbs

Communication facilitated the abolitionist movement. Americans got better access to war reports even though they were often wildly inaccurate. Weekly periodical/magazines like Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper and Harper's Weekly sent out artists and illustrators like Alfred Waud and Winslow Homer to bring the war to the people.

Scientific American also covered the war. Almost every issue had at least one article on the newest technological developments.

The thousands of men who were maimed and lost limbs inspired entrepreneurs to design new and improved prosthetic limbs. The Patent Office granted 133 patents for them from 1866 to 1873. Perhaps 60,000 men lost limbs.

--Old Secesh