BGuthrie Photos: DC -- Donald W. Reynolds Center (NPG) -- Exhibit: Storied Women of the Civil War Era

DC -- Donald W. Reynolds Center (NPG) -- Exhibit: Storied Women of the Civil War Era:

Bruce Guthrie Photos Home Page: [Click here] to go to Bruce Guthrie Photos home page.

Description of Pictures: Storied Women of the Civil War Era
May 24, 2019 - May 8, 2022
During the Civil War era, numerous women rose to national prominence -- from First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln to the actress and Union spy Pauline Cushman. This intimate exhibition includes portraits of these and other intriguing women who captivated the public while becoming sought-after subjects for Mathew Brady’s camera. Ann Shumard, the National Portrait Gallery’s senior curator of photographs, is the curator of this exhibition.

Recognize anyone? If you recognize specific folks (or other stuff) and I haven't labeled them, please identify them for the world. Click the little pencil icon

underneath the file name (just above the picture). Spammers need not apply.

Copyrights: All pictures were taken by amateur photographer Bruce Guthrie (me!) who retains copyright on them. Free for non-commercial use with attribution. See the [Creative Commons] definition of what this means. "Photos (c) Bruce Guthrie" is fine for attribution. (Commercial use folks including AI scrapers can of course contact me.) Feel free to use in publications and pages with attribution but you don't have permission to sell the photos themselves. A free copy of any printed publication using any photographs is requested. Descriptive text, if any, is from a mixture of sources, quite frequently from signs at the location or from official web sites; copyrights, if any, are retained by their original owners.

Accessing as Spider: The system has identified your IP as being a spider.
IP Address: 18.224.214.215 -- Domain: Amazon Technologies
I love well-behaved spiders! They are, in fact, how most people find my site. Unfortunately, my network has a limited bandwidth and pictures take up bandwidth. Spiders ask for lots and lots of pages and chew up lots and lots of bandwidth which slows things down considerably for regular folk. To counter this, you'll see all the text on the page but the images are being suppressed. Also, some system options like merges are being blocked for you.
Note: Permission is NOT granted for spiders, robots, etc to use the site for AI-generation purposes. I'm sure you're thrilled by your ability to make revenue from my work but there's nothing in that for my human users or for me.
If you are in fact human, please email me at guthrie.bruce@gmail.com and I can check if your designation was made in error. Given your number of hits, that's unlikely but what the hell.

Help? The Medium (Email) links are for screen viewing and emailing. You'll want bigger sizes for printing. [Click here for additional help]

Share: Facebook Twitter Digg
[1] SIMBSW_190617_06.JPG	[2] SIMBSW_190617_14.JPG	[3] SIMBSW_190617_19.JPG
[4] SIMBSW_190619_01.JPG	[5] SIMBSW_190619_03.JPG	[6] SIMBSW_190619_06.JPG
[7] SIMBSW_190619_11.JPG	[8] SIMBSW_190619_16.JPG	[9] SIMBSW_190619_21.JPG
[10] SIMBSW_190619_30.JPG	[11] SIMBSW_190619_37.JPG	[12] SIMBSW_190619_44.JPG
[13] SIMBSW_190619_50.JPG	[14] SIMBSW_190619_63.JPG	[15] SIMBSW_190619_69.JPG
[16] SIMBSW_190619_75.JPG	[17] SIMBSW_190619_81.JPG	[18] SIMBSW_190619_89.JPG

Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. SIMBSW_190617_06.JPG: Pauline Cushman 1833-1893 Born New Orleans, Louisiana A brief but harrowing career as a Union spy transformed minor actress Pauline Cushman into a major celebrity. While appearing in a play in Union-occupied Louisville, Kentucky, in 1863, Cushman gained entrée to Confederate circles by publicly feigning southern sympathies. Hailed as the darling of the rebel troops, Cushman gathered intelligence for the North until her duplicity was discovered. Arrested, tried, and condemned to hang, she was rescued by Union forces before the sentence could be carried out. In recognition of her service to the nation, Cushman received a commendation from President Lincoln and was awarded the honorary rank of major. In June 1864 P. T. Barnum advertised that "MISS MAJOR PAULINE CUSHMAN! THE FAMOUS UNION SPY AND SCOUT" would recount her "EXTRAORDINARY EXPLOITS and ADVENTURES" during a series of appearances at his American Museum. Barnum also advised patrons that "elegant" carte-de-visite portraits of Cushman would be offered for sale. Mathew Brady Studio (active 1844-94) Modern albumen silver print from 1864 wet-collodion negative
2. SIMBSW_190617_14.JPG: Julia Dent Grant, 1826-1902 Born White Haven, near St. Louis, Missouri Julia Grant served as a stabilizing influence in the life of her husband, Ulysses S. Grant. She remained steadfast in her devotion and her belief in his potential, despite a series of setbacks that plagued the couple during the early years of their marriage. When Grant reentered military service during the Civil War, his need for his wife's companionship and counsel was such that Julia hastened to join him in the field whenever possible. Throughout the war, no general's wife spent as much time in army encampments as she did. While traveling to meet her husband in Oxford, Mississippi, in December 1862, Julia narrowly avoided capture by Confederate raiders when they swept into the town of Holly Springs. She later joined Grant at his encampments in Jackson, Memphis, Nashville, Vicksburg, and City Point. At the war's conclusion, Julia accompanied her husband to Washington, D.C, along with his victorious troops. Mathew Brady Studio, modern print from c. 1864 wet collodion negative
3. SIMBSW_190619_01.JPG: Storied Women of the Civil War Era A number of women rose to national prominence during the Civil War era. Some, such as First Ladies Mary Todd Lincoln and Julia Dent Grant, became public figures when their husbands' careers thrust them into the spotlight. Others -- such as abolitionist Anna Elizabeth Dickinson, actress and theater manager Laura Keene, and Union spy Pauline Cushman -- achieved recognition on their own terms. Despite traveling different paths to fame, these women had at least one thing in common: they each visited one of Mathew Brady's photography studios in New York City or Washington, D.C., and posed for a portrait in the popular, new carte de visite format. Similar in size to a European calling card, the carte de visite originated in France in the mid-1850s and was introduced to the American market in the late summer of 1859. Inexpensive to produce and collect, they fueled the rapid growth of a mass market for affordable photographic portraits. Americans not only collected images of their friends and family members but delighted in filling parlor albums with pictures of men and women of note. When the vogue for collecting such likenesses took hold, Mathew Brady's studios met the demand by producing thousands of cartes de visite, including portraits of many of those women who captured the public's imagination during the Civil War era. The photographs exhibited here are modern prints made from original Brady carte de visite negatives in the National Portrait Gallery's Frederick Hill Meserve Collection.
4. SIMBSW_190619_06.JPG: Jessie Benton Fremont, 1824-1902 Born Rockbridge County, Virginia Jessie Benton Frémont spent her life in the public eye -- as the daughter of Missouri senator Thomas Hart Benton, as the wife of noted explorer John C. Frémont, and later as a popular author. Jessie secured her father's backing for Frémont to lead a series of government-sponsored expeditions that played a pivotal role in promoting overland migration to the far west. Upon Frémont's return from the first of these expeditions in 1842, Jessie helped to write the vivid report of his findings that first brought him national recognition. When Frémont ran as the first Republican candidate for president in 1856, she took an active part in his campaign. In September 1861, after President Lincoln reprimanded General Frémont for his conduct as commander of the Union Army's Western Department, Jessie hurried to Washington, D.C. There, she confronted the president in a futile effort to salvage her husband's Civil War command. Mathew Brady Studio, from c 1863 wet collodion negative
5. SIMBSW_190619_11.JPG: Lavina Warren Stratton, 1841-1919 Mathew Brady Studio, modern print from 1863 wet collodion negative
6. SIMBSW_190619_16.JPG: Clara Louise Kellogg, 1842-1916 Born Sumterville [now Sumter], South Carolina At a time when opera was dominated by European stars, American soprano Clara Louise Kellogg emerged as a significant, homegrown talent. Kellogg received her vocal training in New York City, where she made her formal debut as Gilda in Verdi's Rigoletto at the Academy of Music on February 27, 1861. When the public's taste for entertainment faltered at the start of the Civil War, Kellogg and impresario Max Maretzek brought audiences back to the theater with a rousing, if unconventional, production of Donizetti's La Figlia del Reggimento that featured American patriotic songs and actual Zouaves. Two years later, in the New York City premier of Gounod's Faust, the young singer scored a triumph with her performance as Marguerite -- a role the New York Times praised as suiting Kellogg's voice "to perfection," adding, "there is not a note in it that could be sung more truthfully or with better effect." Mathew Brady Studio, modern print from c. 1863 wet collodion negative
7. SIMBSW_190619_21.JPG: Anna Elizabeth Dickinson, 1842-1932 Born Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Acclaimed as "The Girl Orator" by radical reformer William Lloyd Garrison, Anna Elizabeth Dickinson was still in her teens when she launched her public- speaking career. An ardent abolitionist and women's rights advocate, she first found receptive audiences in Philadelphia, where she spoke before the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society (1860) and later delivered an address titled "The Rights and Wrongs of Women" (1861). On the lecture circuit, Dickinson built a following among listeners captivated by her intensity, youth, and dedication to reform. She campaigned effectively for Republican candidates, and in 1863, she joined Frederick Douglass in promoting African American enlistment in the Union Army. On January 16, 1864, at the invitation of Congressional Republicans, Dickinson became the first woman to speak before the U.S. House of Representatives. In her address, she lauded the contributions of African Americans to the war effort and endorsed the reelection of President Lincoln. Mathew Brady Studio, modern print from c. 1863 wet collodion negative
8. SIMBSW_190619_30.JPG: Harriet Lane, 1830-1903 Born Mercersburg, Pennsylvania After James Buchanan won the presidential election of 1856, his orphaned niece and ward, Harriet Lane, assumed the role of First Lady. Though only twenty-six, Lane was already accustomed to moving in exalted circles. In 1854, while accompanying her uncle during his first year as U.S. ambassador to Great Britain, she mingled easily with members of the royal family. Later, as President Buchanan's official hostess, Lane brought a heightened level of sophistication to White House functions. She also took a lively interest in cultural pursuits and supported nascent efforts to found a national gallery in Washington, D.C. Following Harriet Lane's White House tenure, her name remained in the news. In April 1861, a U.S. Navy ship christened in her honor fired across the bow of the Nashville near Charleston, South Carolina, three days before the U.S. surrender of Fort Sumter that signaled the start of the Civil War. Mathew Brady Studio, modern print from c. 1860 wet collodion negative
9. SIMBSW_190619_37.JPG: Teresa Carreno, 1853-1917 Pianist Teresa Carreño was only eight years old and a recent émigré from Venezuela when she gave her first public recital in New York in 1862. This debut was a resounding success and attracted the notice of composer and piano virtuoso Louis Moreau Gottschalk, who quickly assumed the role of Carreño's teacher and mentor. Within a year, she was performing for President Lincoln at the White House, where her selections included a dazzling interpretation of the president's favorite, "Listen to the Mockingbird." Continuing her musical studies in Europe in 1866, Carreño went on to make the successful transition from child prodigy to adult performer whose virtuosity and power earned her the title "the Valkyrie of the piano." Recognized as one of the greatest pianists of her time, she continued to perform on the concert stage until just weeks before her death. Mathew Brady Studio, modern print from c. 1862 wet collodion negative
10. SIMBSW_190619_44.JPG: Laura Keene, 1820/26-1873 Born London, England English actress Laura Keene achieved fame in the United States, not only as a brilliant comedic star but as one of the nation's first woman managers of a major theatrical company. Following her American stage debut in 1852, Keene performed in a number of cities and briefly managed theaters in Baltimore and San Francisco before settling in New York City, where she opened her own theater in 1856. Specializing in elaborately staged comic productions, Keene delighted audiences and succeeded in attracting to her company a host of celebrated actors. She assumed a role in each of her productions, achieving her greatest success as Florence Trenchard in the hugely popular comedy Our American Cousin. On the night of April 14, 1865, Keene was appearing in this play at Ford's Theatre for an audience that included Abraham Lincoln when John Wilkes Booth fired the shot that claimed the president's life. Mathew Brady Studio, modern print from c. 1865 wet collodion negative
11. SIMBSW_190619_50.JPG: Pauline Cushman 1833-1893 Born New Orleans, Louisiana A brief but harrowing career as a Union spy transformed minor actress Pauline Cushman into a major celebrity. While appearing in a play in Union-occupied Louisville, Kentucky, in 1863, Cushman gained entrée to Confederate circles by publicly feigning southern sympathies. Hailed as the darling of the rebel troops, Cushman gathered intelligence for the North until her duplicity was discovered. Arrested, tried, and condemned to hang, she was rescued by Union forces before the sentence could be carried out. In recognition of her service to the nation, Cushman received a commendation from President Lincoln and was awarded the honorary rank of major. In June 1864 P. T. Barnum advertised that "MISS MAJOR PAULINE CUSHMAN! THE FAMOUS UNION SPY AND SCOUT" would recount her "EXTRAORDINARY EXPLOITS and ADVENTURES" during a series of appearances at his American Museum. Barnum also advised patrons that "elegant" carte-de-visite portraits of Cushman would be offered for sale. Mathew Brady Studio (active 1844-94) Modern albumen silver print from 1864 wet-collodion negative
12. SIMBSW_190619_63.JPG: Kate Chase Sprague, 1840-1899 Born Cincinnati, Ohio Consumed by the desire to see her father elected president, Kate Chase did everything in her power to advance Salmon P. Chase's political career. When her thrice-widowed father won Ohio's governorship, in 1856, he chose sixteen-year-old Kate to serve as his official hostess. She laid the groundwork for his bid to become the Republican Party's 1860 presidential nominee by wining and dining the influential politicians who flocked to her glamorous soirees. Bitterly disappointed when Abraham Lincoln secured the Republican nomination and the presidency, Kate took some consolation in her father's appointment as Secretary of the Treasury. She established their Washington, D.C., residence as a glittering salon and reigned as the belle of capital society while building a network of political alliances. Kate's marriage in 1863 to millionaire William Sprague helped to finance her father's presidential ambitions, but her hopes were dashed when Lincoln was nominated for a second term. Mathew Brady Studio, modern print from c. 1863 wet collodion negative
13. SIMBSW_190619_69.JPG: Queen Emma, 1836-1885 Born Honolulu, Hawaii On May 6, 1865, less than a month after General Robert E. Lee's surrender marked the end of the Civil War, Hawaii's recently widowed Queen Emma embarked from Honolulu on a lengthy international tour. After an extended stay in England, where she met with Queen Victoria and raised funds for the construction of an Anglican cathedral in Honolulu, Queen Emma traveled to a host of European cities. In late July 1866, following a second visit to London and brief sojourn in Ireland, she sailed for New York City. As the first queen of any nation to visit the United States, she was welcomed with great fanfare that included a thirteen-gun salute when her ship docked on August 6. Warmly praised by the New York press, Queen Emma generated similar excitement when she traveled to Washington, D.C., where President Andrew Johnson feted her at a grand White House reception. Mathew Brady Studio, print from 1866 wet collodion negative
14. SIMBSW_190619_75.JPG: Kate Bateman, 1842-1917 Just four years old when she made her acting debut, Kate Bateman enjoyed great success as a child prodigy until she outgrew such roles at the age of fourteen and briefly retired from the stage. She reemerged in 1860 in the title role of Evangeline, a dramatization of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's celebrated poem, and soon confirmed her status as a bona fide adult star with her portrayal of Julia in the 1862 production of The Hunchback. Her most famous role, however, was that of Leah in Leah, the Forsaken-a melodrama adapted specifically for her by playwright Augustin Daly. When Leah opened in New York in 1863, Bateman's stirring performance as the Jewish maiden abandoned by her Christian lover received a wildly enthusiastic reception from the public. Although Bateman would play many parts during her long career, Leah remained her greatest triumph. Mathew Brady Studio, print from 1863 wet collodion negative
15. SIMBSW_190619_81.JPG: Mary Todd Lincoln, 1818-1882 Born Lexington, Kentucky When her husband was elected president in 1860, Mary Todd Lincoln welcomed her role as the nation's First Lady. Yet, her years in the White House proved far from happy. Unjustly suspected by many of harboring Confederate sympathies, she quickly became a target of public criticism for everything from her Southern birth to her extravagant style of entertaining. Hurt and embittered by these attacks, Mrs. Lincoln was shaken further by the death in 1862 of the Lincolns' beloved eleven-year-old son, Willie. Still suffering from that tragic loss, she was utterly devastated by her husband's assassination at the hands of John Wilkes Booth in April 1865. Mrs. Lincoln never fully regained her equilibrium and spent her remaining years plagued by mental instability. Mrs. Lincoln posed for this portrait in one of the elegant silk gowns fashioned for her by the talented African American dressmaker Elizabeth Keckley. Mathew Brady Studio, print from 1862 wet collodion negative
16. SIMBSW_190619_89.JPG: Mrs. J. H. Allen, c 1840-1911 Birthplace unknown As the practice of casting mature actresses to play the roles of youthful heroines began to wane in the mid-1850s, the charming ingénue Mrs. J. H. Allen emerged to claim such roles. Performing exclusively under her married name (she was the wife of actor and theater manager J. H. Allen), Mrs. Allen made her New York City acting debut in 1855. Three years later, the New York Times hailed her as "the most beautiful woman on the New-York stage" and noted her rapid rise as the leading actress at the city's principal theater. In 1859, Allen portrayed Zoe, the tragic mixed-race heroine, in Dion Boucicault's stirring new melodrama The Octoroon. When Laura Keene staged the wildly popular extravaganza The Seven Sisters, during the 1860–61 season, Allen appeared as a flag-draped Columbia in one of "a series of tableaux bearing on the great tragedy of Secession, then rending the republic." Mathew Brady Studio, print from c. 1861 wet collodion negative
AAA "Gem": AAA considers this location to be a "must see" point of interest. To see pictures of other areas that AAA considers to be Gems, click here.
Bigger photos? To save server space, the full-sized versions of these images have either not been loaded to the server or have been removed from the server. (Only some pages are loaded with full-sized images and those usually get removed after three months.) I still have them though. If you want me to email them to you, please send an email to guthrie.bruce@gmail.com and I can email them to you, or, depending on the number of images, just repost the page again will the full-sized images.
Connection Not Secure messages? Those warnings you get from your browser about this site not having secure connections worry some people. This means this site does not have SSL installed (the link is http:, not https:). That's bad if you're entering credit card numbers, passwords, or other personal information. But this site doesn't collect any personal information so SSL is not necessary. Life's good!
Photo Contact: [Email Bruce Guthrie].