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[Fharms]

I discovered this tintype in the wall of my home in West Chester, PA.

Anyone have a thought on who this might be or at least some information about who he was with etc.

 

[Sivart]

With this sort of thing, it's very hard to identify someone just based on a photo. You could try opening up the tintype to see if there is a note or any sort of identification papers hidden somewhere. If you don't feel comfortable opening it up, take it to a professional and they can do it for you. You could also try searching for information, if you bought it from someone, contacting the seller, just try and find the tintype's origin. Other than that, there's not much you can really do unfortunately.

 

[Salterr]

I discovered this tintype in the wall of my home in West Chester, PA.

Anyone have a thought on who this might be or at least some information about who he was with etc.

View attachment 532703

View attachment 532704

This is a phenomenal image! Finding items like these happens more than you'd think, especially if your house is as old as this image. Taking the photo out is very easy because it's just held in by friction from the velvet border. You can use a fingernail or butter knife whatever is thin to pry up a corner and then use your fingernail to take it out. Take your time with it and don't go fast, you're not trying to start a chainsaw . Sometimes there's an ID but it might be a good idea to check the records of your home if it's that old to see who owned it back then. It could have been sent home to a relative or perhaps you had a collector as a previous resident. If you've stumbled across a secret civil war collection hidden in your walls we can help identify those things too

 

[UCVRelics]

I discovered this tintype in the wall of my home in West Chester, PA.

Anyone have a thought on who this might be or at least some information about who he was with etc.

View attachment 532703

View attachment 532704

Its an early war photo as he has shoulder straps and looks like a model 1842 musket.

 

[JOHN42768]

Welcome, enjoy

 

[Salterr]

Its an early war photo as he has shoulder straps and looks like a model 1842 musket.

Do you think since it was found in PA that it could be an NY jacket with the shoulder tabs?

 

[SethJ]

I discovered this tintype in the wall of my home in West Chester, PA.

Anyone have a thought on who this might be or at least some information about who he was with etc.

View attachment 532703

View attachment 532704

Interesting uniform on this fellow. The color of both the trousers and the jacket are similar... The jacket being only slightly darker than the trousers. He has no belt buckle that I can see... And no cartridge box sling plate either. I wonder if this is a yankee of the early war, or if it's a yankee who lost his buckles before the pictures were taken.
And perhaps it's just me... But does that rifle seem very big for that man..?

 

[R. Porter]

Do people really find things in the walls of old houses? Attic, sure! Basement, maybe. But walls? A few years back, eBay would have a sword found in a wall in Virginia or North Carolina once a month if not more often (same thing with the cavalry field of Gettysburg.). This was always cited as proof that the weapon was Confederate. I'm not challenging the original poster, I'm just asking if things are found in walls and if so, why are they put there and why are they found? Why are so many walls being torn open? Renovation? Demolition? Are they being found only in Civil War period houses or post war houses too?

Nice image, by the way. I sorta feel the gun looks big on the subject too.

 

[OldSarge79]

But does that rifle seem very big for that man..?

My first impression was that he had a Model 1842 WALL GUN.
But if you look at the soldier's thighs, they look huge. I think the camera was positioned at a low level, and the legs were closest to the lens, followed by the musket, and the face was farthest away, creating a distorted image.

 

[SethJ]

My first impression was that he had a Model 1842 WALL GUN.
But if you look at the soldier's thighs, they look huge. I think the camera was positioned at a low level, and the legs were closest to the lens, followed by the musket, and the face was farthest away, creating a distorted image.

I jokingly thought it was a wall gun as well... But you make a good point about the distancing in the photo.... Unless of course, he's just a small person of course.

 

[Salterr]

Do people really find things in the walls of old houses? Attic, sure! Basement, maybe. But walls? A few years back, eBay would have a sword found in a wall in Virginia or North Carolina once a month if not more often (same thing with the cavalry field of Gettysburg.). This was always cited as proof that the weapon was Confederate. I'm not challenging the original poster, I'm just asking if things are found in walls and if so, why are they put there and why are they found? Why are so many walls being torn open? Renovation? Demolition? Are they being found only in Civil War period houses or post war houses too?

Nice image, by the way. I sorta feel the gun looks big on the subject too.

I guess it depends on the age of the house. The OP doesn't specify how old the house is but there have been stories of people either storing things or items falling behind walls from attic rafters. I've heard many times that people have retrieved very old newspapers from walls. Used for insulation in very old houses. It could be entirely possible that a renovation put up an inner wall with modern insulation as to not disturb the original wall of some Victorian house. Not saying the OP lives in a Victorian mansion but some of the houses are protected from remodeling from a preservation aspect. I've seen it where entire fireplaces were boarded up and walled off, the owners never knowing it was there until a renovation.

 

[lupaglupa]

I second the suggestion to try to (gently) remove the photo from the frame and look at the back. It may have a name on it if you are lucky. It will likely have a photographer's ad on it. It's possible that information on the back of the photo combined with information about who owned you house during and after the War could lead to some sort of an identification.

 

[RaggedAssSecond]

@Fharms what state and county do you live in? This information might help us narrow down the regiment.

Merry Christmas !

 

[James Brenner]

It's possible, too, that the soldier could be from either Ohio or Indiana. Some of their 90 day units wore gray jackets (many with epaulets) and pants.

 

[Old Soldier]

As usual, I have flipped the image since this is a mirror image:

Some observations:

• The long arm looks like a Springfield M1842 smoothbore musket - no backsight
• His right arm suggests stripes, the width of which indicates a sergeant and since it matches the color of the jacket, likely infantry.
• The epaulets also lend credence to the rank.
• The absence of buckles may indicate a rotated belt (pulled around so no buckle to be seen) Why? The mirrored image would be obvious and this means no 'guilding' needed to be done to disguise it. To back this up, note the sword strap loop riveted on the belt to the left of the photo. That would have been on the LEFT of the biuckle
• The rifle may well have hidden the crossbelt badge or it may have been reversed like the belt.
• The confusion around the hammer may be the back of the chair.
• The lack of difference in shade between trouser and jacket and the lighness of shade suggests early Confederate (shell jacket) but I have seen similar shades connected with Union soldier portrats.

 

[Fharms]

With this sort of thing, it's very hard to identify someone just based on a photo. You could try opening up the tintype to see if there is a note or any sort of identification papers hidden somewhere. If you don't feel comfortable opening it up, take it to a professional and they can do it for you. You could also try searching for information, if you bought it from someone, contacting the seller, just try and find the tintype's origin. Other than that, there's not much you can really do unfortunately.

Thanks for the advice. Unfortunately I found the photo in the wall of my house while I was making a repair.

 

[Fharms]

As usual, I have flipped the image since this is a mirror image:
View attachment 532765

Some observations:

• The long arm looks like a Springfield M1842 smoothbore musket - no backsight
• His right arm suggests stripes, the width of which indicates a sergeant and since it matches the color of the jacket, likely infantry.
• The epaulets also lend credence to the rank.
• The absence of buckles may indicate a rotated belt (pulled around so no buckle to be seen) Why? The mirrored image would be obvious and this means no 'guilding' needed to be done to disguise it. To back this up, note the sword strap loop riveted on the belt to the left of the photo. That would have been on the LEFT of the biuckle
• The rifle may well have hidden the crossbelt badge or it may have been reversed like the belt.
• The confusion around the hammer may be the back of the chair.
• The lack of difference in shade between trouser and jacket and the lighness of shade suggests early Confederate (shell jacket) but I have seen similar shades connected with Union soldier portrats.

Wow, thanks so much for this info. I was wondering if he was a confederate soldier given the shade of the uniform.

I'm thinking of selling my cannonball and the tintype as a set. No idea if that would give me more money or not

 

[Fharms]

It's possible, too, that the soldier could be from either Ohio or Indiana. Some of their 90 day units wore gray jackets (many with epaulets) and pants.

The house was relatively new. Built in the 2000's. It's located in West Chester PA.

Thanks to everyone for sharing your expertise

 

[Fharms]

I'm new to posting replies so I don't know if everyone is able to see my responses. I want everyone to know how much I appreciate the help.

No one has any thoughts on the 6lb cannonball?

 

[Robert Gray]

The belts seem rather loosely placed in position, not worn by the subject. They may be photographer's props.