This newly armed soldier is shown seated from the knees up. He still wears civilian clothes. His trousers are a very rough weave and he wears a double-breasted coat that might be a bit out of fashion, apparently buttoning together with two rows of closely spaced buttons at the bottom and the lapels worn open since no upper buttons or button holes are visible. His shirt has a narrow, patterned binding along the collar, down the front and across the openings of a breast pocket on either side that is reminiscent of some of battle shirts worn by western theatre guerrillas, but probably indicates no particular allegiance on its own.

He has armed himself for the conflict with a military rifle that shows its sling and he wears a bayonet in its sheath and a cap box on his waist belt. No belt plate is visible. It is impossible to guess his sympathies, but he has the definite feel of a border state resident of very modest means, perhaps from Kansas or Missouri, who has enrolled in a state guard of some sort and been hastily equipped to defend the right as he sees it.

The clarity and detail are quite good and the content is extremely interesting. The photographer has touched up his eyes, moustache, and collar line, and darkened his hair slightly for contrast. The he holds his rifle to as to appear in his right hand and has moved his bayonet over to appear to be on his left but his shirt buttons and the mortise of the socket bayonet show that the photographer was working with a tintype. As with most such images, enlarged for display in a wall frame, we can only wonder whether he survived the conflict. For many families the photo sent home by a loved one to mark the beginning of his military career became the last or only image they would possess of him. The mat on the photo is likely the original. The frame is of the period, but somewhat later. This is a very interesting photo.

[SR]

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