African Americana

2 1/8 x 3 9/16 in. CDV on cardstock mount (toning, surface soiling, and discoloration throughout, corner and edge wear). Verso with Searby's pictorial imprint and pencil inscription reading, "Rev. Jeremiah / Asher."

Asher was a third-generation free man whose grandfather fought in the American Revolution. Jeremiah was licensed as a minister in 1837 and would serve churches in Providence, RI; Washington, DC; Philadelphia, and Yorktown, VA. In 1863, Asher wrote to President Lincoln to advocate the allowance of Black ministers to serve as chaplains in the United States Army. His appeal was successful, and he became the chaplain of the 6th US Colored Troops, enlisting on 4 December 1863. While administering to ill soldiers in Wilmington, NC, he caught typhoid and died on 27 July 1865.