American Historical Ephemera and Photography

Longtime Civil War collector's personal collection of imprints and research dealing largely with Civil War POWs and prisons. Lot contains approximately 90+ imprints, published ca 1860s-1950s (bulk 1875-1925), thoughtfully organized and housed in labeled manila envelopes, and accompanied by a single sheet identifying details of the publication. Some imprints are unique publications, while others are scholarly or mass market publications which contain articles related to the Civil War.

Within the collection, approximately 30 imprints focus on general prisoner life, including prisoner narratives, escapes, and conditions within the prisons. Another group of imprints focuses more specifically on Andersonville (approx. 20 imprints) and Libby (approx. 11 imprints) prisons, though Johnson's Island, Elmira, Salisbury, Point Lookout and other confinement locations are also represented in a smaller number of imprints and research materials. For Johnson's Island in particular, the bulk of the material is photocopied from the Sandusky [Ohio] library, and includes copies of letters, official documents, maps, research, personal narratives, and other documentation associated with the prison there.

A group of approximately 25 imprints is thematically more general in nature, and represents various Civil War narratives and articles published in a variety of imprints.

Several hundred pages of photocopied research, largely from scholarly publications and student doctoral or master's research also accompanies the lot.

A well-organized and substantive research collection with many scarce and interesting imprints.