Product Description

The Battle of Gettysburg was the bloodiest battle of the American Civil War and considered by many historians to be the war s turning point. During three days in July 1863, the armies of the South under General Robert E. Lee and the armies of the North commanded by General George G. Meade clashed in the hills and dales surrounding the Pennsylvania town of Gettysburg. When the battle ended on July 3, more than 46,000 soldiers had been killed, wounded, captured, or gone missing.
Historic Photos of Gettysburg recounts the events of this momentous battle. From the carnage at Devil s Den and Pickett s Charge to Lincoln s Gettysburg Address and the 50th and 75th reunions of the veterans from both sides, this look at the scene of the conflict, its aftermath, and its commemoration brings together in one volume a comprehensive visual record of this pivotal event.
Included in these pages are hundreds of historic photographs, made by Civil War photographer Mathew Brady and many others, all published in striking black and white. As a collection, these images preserve the historic events at Gettysburg, which helped shape the future of a nation, and document a reunified nation mending its soul.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #257900 in Books
• Published on: 2007-05-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 206 pages

Review
Salmon gives us another photographic tour of the battlefield, reaching forward into the 20th century in a most appealing and interesting manner...In each section the reader is treated to a wealth of photographs, some as familiar as old friends, some new and undiscovered...the book is very well constructed, has an excellent set of reference notes on the photographs and one of the best dust jackets I have ever seen. In the end, all that matters is the enjoyment the reader receives returning to the battlefield with these soldiers, remembering those terrible three days in July 1863. If you desire such an experience, Salmon s book is for you --Civil War News

Veteran author John S. Salmon has assembled an excellent collection of some of the most famous photographs of the historic Gettysburg, Pennsylvania battlefield and town...The book is a very useful addition to the Civil War library and would make a fine coffee table book for display and browsing. ...easily on the list of best anthologies of Gettysburg photographs... --- Scott Mingus c/o Civil War Librarian http://civilwarlibrarian.blogspot.com/2007/07/historic-photos-of-gettysburg.html

With captions and text by historian John Salmon, Historic Photos of Gettysburg features some two hundred black and white photographs (many of them published here for the first time), making this unique volume a critically important addition to community and academic library American Civil War Studies reference collections, and a must read title for all Civil War enthusiasts and students. --Midwest Book Review

About the Author
John S. Salmon has written or edited several books and articles, including Franklin County, Virginia, 1786 1986: A Bicentennial History and Historic Photos of Richmond, another volume from Turner Publishing sure to delight anyone interested in United States history.
John has B.A. and M.A. degrees in American history. A former archivist at the Library of Virginia, he is retired from the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, where he was staff historian and wrote The Official Virginia Civil War Battlefield Guide.

Customer Reviews

Most interesting photos taken shortly after the battle through the 50th and 75th anniversaries
We have all seen the usual photos of Gettysburg. Little Round Top, Big Round Top, the fiftieth anniversary handshake across the stone wall, and so forth. However, this collection has a couple of hundred photographs that include pictures taken within days and weeks of the actual battle. Rather than seeing a movie reconstruction, we can see the stone walls piled up or the fieldworks created by the soldiers themselves.

The text of the book, by John S. Salmon, is also quite helpful. He helps us understand how some of the more famous shots of, say, a sharpshooter's body behind stone wall created for the battle, was actually a constructed shot. In another, a terribly damaged corpse was said to be that of a soldier killed by artillery, but the author says that subsequent analysis indicates that he was probably killed by rifle fire and his body damaged by rummaging hogs. His text about the fiftieth and seventy-fifth reunions is also very helpful and quite interesting.

The pictures are printed in a large format and reward close observation. We can see detail and things in these pictures that we don't get from any dramatization of these events. They make a wonderful resource in addition to and as a complement to the many great words written about this very important battle in the history of the Civil War (or whatever you prefer to call that war).

What a fascinating book!

Excellent photo anthology, but with a few caveats
John S. Salmon has assembled an excellent collection of some of the most famous photographs of the historic Gettysburg, Pennsylvania battlefield and town, most taken with a couple of decades after the July 1863 battle. Included are some of the very best photographs, including some of the studies of dead soldiers, pictures of the key buildings and locations, early battlefield monumentation, and the various reunions of the veterans. The book is a very useful addition to the Civil War library and would make a fine "coffee table book" for display and browsing. The photo collection is varied and insightful, and the breadth of the pictures selected allows the reader to get a good feel for early photography at the battlefield and environs.

The author includes brief captions for the photos, and that is where I have some minor issues with the book. Hopefully in a second edition, some glaring errors in these captions will be corrected. For example, Zacharia Taney should be Zephaniah according to most local accounts (page 25); a barn on page 84 is portrayed as the Nicholas Codori farm (recent research has shown that this photo is actually a different barn, one that was behind the Dobbin House closer to town), and on page 74, the author incorrectly states that a grave belongs to W. Williams, Company B, 24th Michigan Cavalry should be the 24th Michigan Infantry. There are a few other nagging little nits as well in other captions.

That being said, the photos are the prize of the book. It is easily on the of the best anthologies of Gettysburg photographs in terms of overall scope. The poorly researched captions are not enough of a distraction to prevent me from recommending this book, especially if corrected in a second edition.

A 'must read' title for all Civil War enthusiasts and students.
A former archivist at the Library of Virginia and retired from a career as a staff historian with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, John S. Salmon draws upon the photographic archives of the Library of Congress, the Pennsylvania State Archives, and the Gettysburg National Military Park Library to compiled "Historic Photos Of Gettysburg". The result is an impress 216-page compendium of historic and period photographs visually documenting the American Civil War conflict known as the Battle of Gettysburg and fought out between the Army of the Potomac (Union forces led by Major General George G. Mead) and the Army of Northern Virginia (Confederate forces led by General Robert E. Lee) from July 1 to July 3, 1863 in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. This three-day engagement is considered by Civil War historians to have been the bloodiest battle of the entire four year conflict. The battle was a turning point in the Civil War and stopped Lee's invasion of the North. With captions and text by historian John Salmon, "Historic Photos Of Gettysburg" features some two hundred black-and-white photographs (many of them published here for the first time), making this unique volume a critically important addition to community and academic library American Civil War Studies reference collections, and a 'must read' title for all Civil War enthusiasts and students.