Civil War
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This page deals more with the social and political aspects of the war.
 ACTS
OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF VIRGINIA, PASSED IN 1861,
1861 Confederate Imprint: ACTS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF
VIRGINIA, PASSED IN 1861, IN THE EIGHTY-FIFTH YEAR OF THE COMMONWEALTH.
Richmond: 1861. This document contains, as an Appendix, the
Virginia resolutions adopted in secret session in April and May 1861,
seceding and joining the Confederate States of America. FIRST EDITION.
Parrish & Willingham. Confederate imprints 4385. ; Original quarter leather and marbled boards (rubbed).
Fair- Good. Endpapers and edges have age toning, ep in back has discoloration from newspaper clipping laid in. Internally Gd, some
pages with slight toning or foxing. Spine has a vintage hand written title.
(Cw.412); $275.
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 1863
PRO UNION CIVIL WAR PAMPHLET. About the War. Plain Words to Plain
People by a Plain Man. No author listed (Ezra Hunt); Union League of
Philadelphia. 1863 16pp wraps. 8 ½’ x 5 ¾”. Gives a a pro Union view
of the stages leading to and during the war. Small loss of paper along top
right edge, o/w VG-F cond. (Cw.222); $75.
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 HIGGINSON. THOMAS WENTWORTH.
Carte de visite. 4 1/4" x 2 1/2". Prior to the war, was a pastor,
author , and an outspoken opponent of slavery. During the war, he became captain
of the 51st Mass regt, and later made colonel of the 1st South Carolina
volunteers (later called the 33rd U.S. Colored troops), the first regiment of
freed slaves mustered into national service. Post war, clean sharp waist up
view; Warrens's , Mass photographer's bakmark. (Cw.06); $165.
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One
of the big problems on the home front was the large group of Northerners who
opposed the war. These copperheads, as they were called, organized secret
societies such as the Knights of the Golden Circle. Certainly the most prominent
of these men was , Clement Laird
Vallandigham. They sought
to embarrass the government by discouraging enlistments, opposing the draft, and
even helping Confederate prisoners to escape. Copperheads became influential in
the Democratic party and in the elections of 1862 scored important victories in
Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa.
Clement Vallandigham was born in Ohio, 1820. and was a member of
the state legislature before being elected to the United States House of
Representatives, where he served from 1857 to 1863. Vallandigham was a prominent
member of the Peace Democrats, or Copperheads, a group of Northerners who
opposed the American Civil War. He also became commander of the secret, antiwar
organization known as the Knights of the Golden Circle. In 1863
Vallandigham was arrested and convicted of harboring treasonable sentiments. He
was banished by Lincoln to the Confederacy but returned to Ohio in 1864.
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 VALLANDIGHAM,
CLEMENT LAIRD. Carte de visite. 4" x 2 3/8". C.D. Fredricks,
N.Y. backamark. slight soiling, corners clipped, else VG.
(Cw.80)$120.
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A
LIFE OF CLEMENT L. VALLANDIGHAM. Vallandigham, James L.
Turnbull
Brothers Baltimore 1872 1st 8vo G/- NDJ. Original leather boards show
wear,, respined. 573pp, Steel engraving frontispc of Vallandigham. Written by
his brother, a hard to come by title, overall a good tight volume.
(Cwb.20); $145. |
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 WINFIELD SCOTT HANCOCK.
Stereoview. Yellow mount, 3 1/4" x 7". E. & H.T. Anthony & Co.
Prominent Portraits. No. 2106 Major General Winfield Scott Hancock. Scarce
stereo, however exhibits foxing and moderate soiling and wear. Small paper
affixed to bottom right of mount with manuscript . (Cw.85); $250.
After the resignation of Darius N. Couch, May 22, 1863, Hancock assumed
command of the II Corps. July 1, 1863, Hancock and his II Corps were in Maryland
when Major General George Gordon Meade, now commanding the Army of the Potomac,
sent Hancock to Gettysburg to take command of the field. At 3:30 PM, on July 1,
1863, Hancock arrived at East Cemetery Hill, just outside of Gettysburg,
Pennsylvania and went to work establishing the Union battle line that would be
known as the "Fish Hook." Over the next two days, Winfield Scott
Hancock would play a significant role in the fighting at Gettysburg. On the
third day, General Meade placed Hancock in command of the I and III Corps along
with his own II Corps. Hancock was now commanding three fifths of the Army of
the Potomac at Gettysburg. During the famed Pickett's Charge Hancock was
severely wounded (a wound that would bother him the rest of his life). The
Battle of Gettysburg was over and the Union victory would prove to be the result
of the leadership of Major General Winfield Scott Hancock. Three years later on
April 21, 1866, Hancock would receive the thanks of Congress for his "skill
and heroic valor" during the Battle of Gettysburg.
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 GOVERNEUR WARREN.
Stereoview. Yellow
mount, 3 1/4" x 7". E. & H.T. Anthony & Co. Prominent
Portraits. No. 2185? Major General Governeur K. Warren. Scarce stereo, however
exhibits foxing and moderate soiling and wear. Small paper affixed to bottom
right of mount with manuscript td. (Cw.84); $250.
Promoted to brigadier general on September 26, 1862, he served as chief
engineer of the Army of the Potomac at Gettysburg. Although he did not command
troops at Gettysburg, his advice to Maj. Gen. George Sykes' corps is credited
with having helped divert disaster for the Union. Warren was promoted to major
general to rank from May 3, 1863, and later led the V Corps in the Overland
Campaign of 1864.
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 THE
CHILDREN OF THE BATTLE FIELD. Sheet music, 13 1/4" x 10 1/4"
55 pp complete. Illustrated lithograph cover of the orphaned children of Amos
Humison of the 154th N.Y. Volunteers. Full story on the first page of how ,
after the Battle of Gettysburg, a dead soldier was found on the battlefield
holding an ambrotype of three children. The soldier's name was a mystery; and
copies of the photograph was circulated on hopes of locating the family, and in
the same time, sales of the photograph would aid in the support and education of
those children. After some time, the widow was indeed found. The net
proceeds of this music were also reserved for the support of the
children. A scarce and desirable item, overall fine cond. (Cw.503);
$245.
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During the Civil War, both Union and Confederate armies were modeled
similarly , that of state volunteer militia units organized around a body of
regulars from the U.S. Army. After the enthusiasm for war on both sides
wore off after the bloody campaigns of 1861 and 1862,, the states
attempted to keep their original regiments up to strength and to create new
units by offering bounties . When neither voluntary enlistment (nor the
state compulsory service) produced the number of men needed, both the North and
the South resorted to a federal draft. The southern Congress enacted a draft in
1862. The U.S. Congress passed a militia law that same year and started a draft
the next year through the Enrollment Act of 1863. Voluntary enlistments
were credited against the district quotas, with selection of the remainder by
lot. The federal system continued the policy of being able to hiring a
substitute or paying fees instead of service. Resentment against the economic
imbalance of the state system raged into violence when those inequities were
continued and expanded under the federal draft. Bitter opposition to the draft
continued through the rest of the war.
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 NEW
YORK STATE BOUNTY BOND. 6 3/4" x 11 3/4" 1865 Civil War
State of New York $1000 Bond. "Payment Of Bounties To
Volunteers." Features the raised seal of the Comptroller's Office of The
State Of New York, along with a beautifully done vignette of lady liberty, with
soaring eagle over her shoulder. Very Good to condition, slash cancelled marks.
(Cw.218); $135.
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 ESSEX
COUNTY VOLUNTEER WAR BOND. 9
1/2" x 7 3/4 two page (bi-fold) bond for the town of Newcomb to raise funds
for the payment for bounties. Fine cond. (Cw. 429); $165.
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 BOUNTY
RELATING PROCURING A SUBSTITUTE. Bangor Maine, Feb 28, 1865.
5 x 8" imprinted receipt for bounty. Of note is this bounty was
paid for procuring a substitute, and had been inserted by
manuscript. Overall fine condition. (Cw.404); $100.
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 PROVOST
MARSHAL'S OFFICE US NAVAL SUBSTITUTE. Bangor Feb 28, 1865, Provost
Marshal's Office. 8" x 5" certificate of enlistment, stating
John Donahue as a substitute for Benjamin Grant. The pencil notation on
top reads " For U.S. Navy". Overall fine cond. (Cw.403);
$100.
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One of my favorite avenues of collecting the Civil War is the music it
produced, and more specifically the sheet music, in which numerous covers were
graced with stone lithographs. In his 1966 classic Lincoln and
the Music of the Civil War, Kenneth A. Bernard calls the War Between the
States a musical war. "In camp and hospital they sang -- sentimental
songs and ballads, comic songs and patriotic numbers....The songs were better
than rations or medicine." By Bernard's count, "...during the first
year [of the war] alone, an estimated two thousand compositions were produced,
and by the end of the war more music had been created, played, and sung than
during all our other wars combined. More of the music of the era has endured
than from any other period in our history." For more of the music of the
Civil war, visit the web site for music history of the Civil
War Preservation Trust.
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 MARCH
OF THE 41ST REGIMENT- ILLUSTRATED SHEET MUSIC.
13 " x 10 1/4". 5pp. 1862. Good stone litho of Colonel
Chickering of the 41st Mass Volunteers. it. Trimmed on bottom affecting
copyright notice, from bound volume show binding marks along spine, o/w Fine complete.
(Cw.512); $125.
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 GEN. BIDWELL ILLUSTRATED SHEET MUSIC.
13 1/2" x 10 1/4". 5pp. 1864. "Funeral March. To the Memory of
the lamented General D. Bidwell". Nice waist up stone litho portrait. Small
stain on the left margin, from bound volume show binding marks along spine, o/w
VG complete. (Cw.509); $125.
Bidwell was commissioned colonel of the 48th N. Y. infantry, served with it
through the Peninsular campaign, and during the Seven Days, battles was in
command of a brigade, continuing in charge from Harrison's landing to Washington
and up to the time of the battles of South Mountain and Antietam, when he
resumed command of his regiment. Col. Bidwell took a prominent part in the
battles of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, commanded a brigade at
Gettysburg, and when Gen. Grant took command of the armies in Virginia was again
placed in charge of a brigade, participating in all the battles near Petersburg.
He was commissioned brigadier- general of volunteers in July, 1864, and served
with honor in all the battles in the Shenandoah valley, under Gen. Sheridan, up
to the battle of Cedar creek, in which engagement he was killed.
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 CONFEDERATE SHEET MUSIC. "To
the Friends of Southern Independence. God and Our Rights. 1861.13" x 10
1/4", Published by Blackmar & Bro., New Orleans. A rare title, and a
southern imprint. From bound volume showing minor binding marks along spine. (Cw.
523); $225.
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 THE
DRUMMER BOY OF SHILOH- ILLUSTRATED SHEET MUSIC.
13 1/4 " x 10 1/2". 5pp., complete. 1863. Stone litho
scene at Shiloh.
Exhibits light foxing on cover , a bit heavier internally, from bound volume show binding marks along spine,
overall
VG complete. (Cw.551); $195.
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 CIVIL
WAR- TRUMPET OF FREEDOM MUSIC BOOK. 6 1/4" x 9 3/4, oblong.
Published by Oliver Ditson, 1864. 62pp wraps. The period pen id of
Carmillus T. Warner , Co. H is written on the front cover. Warner
residence was Langrove Vt, enlisted on 10/21/1861 as a musician. On
12/31/1861 he mustered into "H" Co., US Volunteers 2nd
Sharpshooters. He re-enlisted on 12/23/1863 and was killed on 6/11/1864 at
Cold Harbor. The 2nd US Sharpshooters were engaged at First Bull Run,
Peninsular Campaign, Second Bull Run, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville,
Gettysburg, Wilderness, Cold Harbor, and others. Well worn, but complete
and graphically appealing. (Cw.221); $275.
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 LASHED
TO THE MAST- FARRAGUT.
Sheet music. 13 " x 10 ". 7pp. 1867 . A scarce title,
however exhibits moderate to heavy foxing and staining, split spine, o/w
Gd complete. (Cw.555); $65.
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Another example of the graphic arts of the Civil War and music is the
illustrative lettersheet, which in essence combined the text of a song with
letter paper. These songsheets generally were 8 1/2 x 11 inches, folded
once horizontally, with the illustration on the front page, with the other 3
pages available to write on. Most of the surviving sheets are found with
only the illustrated cover intact. Several firms produced work during this
period, mainly G.P. Hardwick of Washington, DC, W.A. Stephens of Philadelphia,
J. Gay and J. Magee of Philadelphia. However it was the Charles Magnus
firm that was the most prolific publisher of illustrated stationery during the
Civil War, making envelopes, letterpaper, songsheets, maps, prints, games,
playing cards and other items.
 PATRIOTIC
LETTERSHEET. Give Us Back Our Old Commander. Song regarding
Gen. McClellan. 8" x 5"; Charles Magnus, NewYork. Hand colored,
Single page, Fine cond. (Cw.442); $95.
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 PATRIOTIC
LETTERSHEET. How Sherman's Veterans' Took Atlanta.. 8"
x 5"; Charles Magnus, NewYork. Hand colored, single page , Fine cond.
(Cw.441); $95..
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 PATRIOTIC
LETTERSHEET. Columbia The Home of the World. Show the
Capitol Building. 8" x 5"; Charles Magnus, NewYork. Hand
colored, single page , a bit of age toning and light soiling, o/w VG+ cond.
(Cw.443); $65.
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From the outset of
the Civil War, patriotic themes began to appear on envelopes illustrating
various scenes, portraits, and sentiments. It is estimated that at least 200
different publishers and printers produced these covers, albums could be bought
during the war in which to mount the envelopes. Curiously, the collecting of
Civil War patriotic covers actually began during the war. It is believes that
between 7,500 and 10,000 different designs exist. For those interested in
further information on this subject, a recommended book is “The Catalog of
Union Civil War Patriotic Covers” by William R. Weiss.
All are postally
unused, measure app. 3 1/4" x 5 1/2". Though I have a small number of
these covers, I have tried to list some that are more graphically
appealing.
 PATRIOTIC COVER -
- Illustrated Patriotic Envelope. Charles Magnus . Exhibits light handling and wear, overall
Fine. (Cw.365); $45.
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 PATRIOTIC COVER -
MISS LIBERTY AND MOTTO - Illustrated Patriotic Envelope. The
Union Must and Shall Be Preserved. Exhibits light light use, small
amount of old adhesive toning on four corners on back, o/w Fine. (Cw.364); $35.
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 PATRIOTIC COVER -
UNION - Illustrated Patriotic Envelope, Eagle and Flag. Published
by Wm. Ridenburgh, Nassau St, NY. Exhibits light handling and wear,
a bit of age toning, paper remnants on back having been affixed in album,
o/w VG-
Fine. (Cw.370); $30.
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PATRIOTIC COVER - SOLDIERS AND STATESMEN - Illustrated Patriotic
Envelope, Graphically appealing flag surrounds Geo Washington. . Published
by Chas. Magnus, NY. Exhibits light handling and wear, small
area of discoloration b/l corner, o/w VG-
Fine. (Cw.371); $35.
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PATRIOTIC COVER - PARSON BROWNLOW - Illustrated Patriotic
Envelope, Portrait of the Fighting Parson, with quote. Exhibits light handling and wear,
a bit of age toning, paper remnants on back having been affixed in album,
o/w VG-
Fine. (Cw.369); $30.pending
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PATRIOTIC COVER - LOYAL STATES NEW JERSEY - Illustrated Patriotic
Envelope, Lady Liberty with seal Published with copyright notice on back
from Rangles & Co, NY. Exhibits very light dampstaining on
cover, a bit more on back, o/w VG-
Fine. (Cw.368); $30.
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 CIVIL
WAR ERA GUN POWDER LABEL. 6"
circular paper label with great graphic of a broadside view of a cannon, along
with surrounding text . A bit of discoloration, unused, overall fine cond. (Cw.
433); $125.
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ACTS
OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF VIRGINIA, PASSED IN 1861,
1863
PRO UNION CIVIL WAR PAMPHLET.
HIGGINSON. THOMAS WENTWORTH
VALLANDIGHAM,
CLEMENT LAIRD.
WINFIELD SCOTT HANCOCK
GOVERNEUR WARREN.
THE
CHILDREN OF THE BATTLE FIELD.
1864
TOWN OF CALLICOON NEW YORK VOLUNTEER BOUNTY FUND
NEW
YORK STATE BOUNTY BOND.
ESSEX
COUNTY VOLUNTEER WAR BOND
BOUNTY
RELATING PROCURING A SUBSTITUTE. 
PROVOST
MARSHAL'S OFFICE US NAVAL SUBSTITUTE.
GEN.
CONCORAN'S RELEASE MARCH- ILLUSTRATED SHEET MUSIC
SONG
OF A THOUSAND YEARS- COLOR ILLUSTRATED SHEET MUSIC
MAJOR GEN. SHERIDAN GRAND VICTORY MARCH
GEN. BIDWELL ILLUSTRATED SHEET MUSIC
CONFEDERATE SHEET MUSIC
THE
DRUMMER BOY OF SHILOH- ILLUSTRATED SHEET MUSIC
CIVIL
WAR- TRUMPET OF FREEDOM MUSIC BOOK.
LASHED
TO THE MAST- FARRAGUT
PATRIOTIC
LETTERSHEET
PATRIOTIC
LETTERSHEET
PATRIOTIC
LETTERSHEET
PATRIOTIC COVER -
PATRIOTIC COVER - COL ROBT. ANDERSON
PATRIOTIC COVER -
MISS LIBERTY AND MOTTO 
PATRIOTIC COVER -
UNION
PATRIOTIC COVER -
CANNON EAGLE AND FLAGS
PATRIOTIC COVER - SOLDIERS AND STATESMEN
PATRIOTIC COVER - PARSON BROWNLOW
PATRIOTIC COVER - LOYAL STATES NEW JERSEY
CIVIL
WAR ERA GUN POWDER LABEL