A renowned collector of Civil War photographs and a prodigious researcher; Ronald S. Coddington combines compelling archival images with biographical stories that reveal the human side of the war. This third volume in his series on Civil War soldiers contains previously unpublished photographs of African American Civil War participants―many of whom fought to secure their freedom. During the Civil War; 200;000 African American men enlisted in the Union army or navy. Some of them were free men and some escaped from slavery; others were released by sympathetic owners to serve the war effort. African American Faces of the Civil War tells the story of the Civil War through the images of men of color who served in roles that ranged from servants and laborers to enlisted men and junior officers.Coddington discovers these portraits― cartes de visite; ambrotypes; and tintypes―in museums; archives; and private collections. He has pieced together each individual’s life and fate based upon personal documents; military records; and pension files. These stories tell of ordinary men who became fighters; of the prejudice they faced; and of the challenges they endured. African American Faces of the Civil War makes an important contribution to a comparatively understudied aspect of the war and provides a fascinating look into lives that helped shape America.
#52330 in Books Solnit; Rebecca 2004-03-02 2004-03-02Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.30 x .60 x 5.40l; .66 #File Name: 0142004103320 pages
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Changing Time...Changing UsBy James D. LongI read Ms.Solnit's book after learning that it had inspired actor/director Gary Oldman to write a screenplay called Flying Horse; with an eye toward directing the film about photo pioneer Eaweard Muybridge. RIVER OF SHADOWS is a meandering but thoughtfully entertaining journey through the energetic; sometimes tragic life of Eaweard Muybridge whose motion-study images were midwife to modern cinema. Solnit grandly sets the stage of Muybridge's era and how the lure of the early photographic process gave the Englishman a new career and a fresh start. His whole-hearted embrace of the burgeoning technology continues to impact us and our perception of time via motion pictures and all forms of emerging visual media. The book title's reference to the "technological wild west" is so appropriate by guiding us through the historical cloud of dust kicked up by an America of the late 1800s with its growing railroads; vanishing cowboys and struggling native tribes; to reveal how science was a significant part of the rough and tumble mix.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Memorable and should not be missedBy JayneAn unusual penetrating study of the beginning of photography; of Muybridge's life and his 'movement studies.' Mr. Stanford; of Stanford university; figures in this history; too.Solnit makes insightful connections between traveling by rail and the moving pictures (river of shadows) and captures interesting verbal snap shots of an era.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. fascinating story and historyBy Katya CohenNot the most scintillating writing I've ever read; but an eye-opening story of an artist (Muybridge) whose work helped shape our world. In fact; before reading this book; I took him entirely for granted and did not even consider him an "artist"; just a photographer who took pictures of things in motion. He is a heck of a lot more than that; and his photographs are beautiful! The book also gave me (a foreigner who did not study the history of the formation of the west) a glimpse at the fascinating and almost incredible history of the formation of San Francisco; and at how truly rapidly this country developed the roots of what it is today (for better and for worse). This should be required reading in history classes.
