Fortifications on Heights of Centreville, Virginia
March 1862
Medium
Albumen print, pl. 5 from the album "Gardner's Photographic Sketch Book of the War, vol. 1" (1866)
Dimensions
Image/paper: 17.8 × 22.6 cm (7 1/16 × 8 15/16 in.); Album page: 31.2 × 44.5 cm (12 5/16 × 17 9/16 in.)
Classification
photograph
Department
Photography and Media
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
196176
Art Historical Context
**Fortifications on Heights of Centreville, Virginia** (March 1862) captures the stark reality of Civil War defenses in northern Virginia, a strategic hub near the First Battle of Bull Run (Manassas) in 1861. Photographers George N. Barnard and James F. Gibson documented these earthen works and wooden stockades atop Centreville's heights, built by Confederate forces to repel Union advances. Taken amid the Peninsula Campaign's early stirrings, the image reflects the war's grinding preparations, where everyday landscapes were transformed into battlegrounds. This albumen print, plate 5 from Alex...