Martin Van Buren Bronson, Company F 1st U.S. Sharpshooters, in a portrait taken in the summer of 1862 while at home in Vermont on recruiting duty. A marble-cutter since the age of 11, Bronson eventually joined a company of Vermont state militia artillery before enlisting in the 3-month 1st Vermont Infantry in May 1861. TheContinue reading "Martin Van Buren Bronson"

Fitz-Greene Halleck, Company F (Vermont) 1st U.S. Sharpshooters in a pair of cdv's from my collection. Halleck was a 21 year old farm laborer in Keeseville, NY before he enlisted with the sharpshooters at nearby Burlington, VT in Sept. 1861. There is not much known about his wartime service prior to the fall of 1863Continue reading "Fitz-Green Halleck"

Lucien A. Witt, Company H (VT) 2nd U.S. Sharpshooters in a signed but undated portrait. Witt was an 18 year old farmer living in Brattleboro, Vermont when he enlisted with the sharpshooters on Oct. 15th 1861. He was present with his company until just after the Gettysburg campaign, however he reportedly had severe trouble withContinue reading "Lucien A. Witt"

A pair of cartes de visite of Lewis J. Allen, the long-serving Sergeant and 1st Sergeant of Vermont's Company F 1st U.S. Sharpshooters. The sharpshooters' regimental historian Charles A. Stevens as well as General William Y. Ripley (Company F's first captain) both noted with some pride that Lewis was a direct descendent of the famedContinue reading "Lewis J. Allen"

A cut-down sixth plate tintype of an unidentified corporal of the 2nd U.S. Sharpshooters circa early 1864, complete with green tinting. I first saw this image in person almost 18 years ago when my friend Dan Wambaugh and I visited with famed artist/historian Don Troiani. We had been invited to view the original green frockContinue reading "Unidentified Corporal, 2nd U.S. Sharpshooters"

Thanks to a very generous trade with collector Charles Joyce I was able to recently add this excellent Berdan's Sharpshooter image to my collection. When Charles first shared this several years ago on a few Facebook collector pages I was immediately drawn to it. The intense sun-burnt look of the subject as well as hisContinue reading "William Jacob Hoffman"

Circa 1909 postcard by the "Elite Studio" of Medina, Ohio, depicting the home of Shubal Coy and family where they were murdered by Frederick F. Streeter on the night of July 1st, 1863. Streeter was an original 1861 enlistee in Berdan's Sharpshooters, serving in Vermont's Company F of the 1st regiment, and was appointed theContinue reading "Frederick F. Streeter"

Captain Seymour F. Norton, Co. E (VT) 2nd U.S. Sharpshooters. Norton was a 20-year old teacher in Burlington, Vermont when he joined Berdan's Sharpshooters in 1861. He was the first man to enlist in the “2nd Co. Vermont Sharpshooters” and was appointed to the rank of 1st Sergeant. In September 1862 Norton was promoted toContinue reading "Seymour F. Norton"

Daniel Davis was a 21-year old resident of Orford, New Hampshire when he crossed into nearby Fairlee, Vermont with his brother Frank to enlist with Co. E 2nd U.S. Sharpshooters in November 1861. The Davis brothers were apparently “on their beer” quite often according to several accounts from within and without their own company. AccordingContinue reading "Daniel Davis"

A signed duplicate of an original I first saw in the Sgt. William F. Tilson cdv album formerly owned by artist/historian Don Troiani. Tilson, a Vermonter from Company E 2nd U.S. Sharpshooters, collected photographs of his friends from both sharpshooter regiments. The cdv was a huge interest to me since it clearly showed a Berdan'sContinue reading "Clark H. Higgins"