Raynor HCA 2014-04
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 5/1/2014
Lithograph titled “THE SOUTHERN PRISONS OF THE U.S. OFFICERS,” featuring twelve vignettes of southern prisons and related POW images, 35-3/4” x 24,” VG. A rare lithograph showing views of several Confederate prison camps in the South, used to hold Union officers during the Civil War. The lithograph contains twelve images of at least six different Confederate camps in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. While Andersonville Prison in Georgia is well known as the largest and most brutal of the Confederate prison camps, this important lithograph shows the conditions and structures at several lesser known southern prisons, and thereby provides valuable information. One of the two central images is a view of the crowded "Asylum Camp" in Columbia, South Carolina. The image shows a pair of two-story buildings in the background, with dozens of tents crowded into an open space in the foreground. The entire camp is surrounded by a fence. Many of the tents have their own small fireplace, and men are shown chopping wood, hanging clothing, preparing food, carrying water, and milling about the yard. There are two other images of Camp Asylum: one showing men taking wood from a large pile, the other a view of the sutler's tent at the camp, showing a large number of men proceeding into a tent to receive supplies. The other central image is of Camp Sorghum in Columbia, South Carolina. Small cabins and tents are shown in a large cleared field patrolled by armed guards. Another small view shows the hospital at the camp, with many wounded men depicted. Views of other prisons show the jail in Columbia, South Carolina; the jail and workhouse in Charleston, S.C. (mostly tents); Camp Oglethorpe in Macon, Georgia (showing several small cabins); and rustic Camp Exchange in Charlotte, North Carolina, showing a number of armed guards patrolling a small group of tents and a crudely built two- story building. There are also views of a performance by "Chandler's String Band", mail delivery (showing scores of men crowded around a building), and an image of long lines of men passing clothing that have apparently just been delivered by a small train. Lithographer and printer Edward Sachse was located in Baltimore, and was therefore well-positioned to produce views and prints for southern and northern markets before and during the Civil War.
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