Sixth-plate full-length studio tintype view with clipped corners. N.p.,n.d. Housed in an elegant oval wooden frame with gold matting. Measuring: 4 1/3 x 6 inches. 

Three vivandières pose together, each considering the camera with an unshakable intensity. To the left is a woman in a plain black frock with white fabric criss-crossing her chest. her long curled hair billowing out of a neatly fastened bonnet. Attached to her side is a bullseye canteen, a popular model used by Union soldiers during the Civil War. In the middle sits an older woman, wearing a checked gown, with a plain white bonnet concealing the dark hair poking out around her temples. Her hands are folded across her lap in an almost authoritative fashion, while a pipe dangles from her mouth. To the right side view stands an elegantly dressed woman in a spotted gown with a darker striped sash wrapped around her waist. An elaborate bonnet of flowers adorns her dark hair, tied with a festooning ribbon around her neck. 

A remarkable portrait of three women, whose personalities are loudly declared through their demeanors and dress. 

Vivandières, originally a French term for women attached to military regiments, were an essential yet understated for during the American Civil War. Many women chose to serve on both sides of the conflict, enlisting with regiments to act as nurses, carry water, and sell goods to the soldiers. Some were wives, but others joined freely out of their own desire for service. Two women were famously awarded the Kearny Cross from their bravery serving as Vivandières during the Civil War, a testament to their courage. These women charged into action alongside soldiers, weaving through the battle to provide aide and relief to wounded and dying soldiers. While the Vivandière movement would not persist past the Civil War in American culture, their bravery throughout their service is to be honored and remembered.  

[Civil War, Union, Confederate] [Photography, Early Photography, Historic Photography, Daguerreotypes, Ambrotypes, Tintypes, Cased Images, Union Cases, Albumen Photographs, CDVs, Carte de Visites, Cartes de Visite, Carte-de-visite, Cartes-de-visite, CDV, Cabinet Cards, Stereoviews, Stereocards]