Crowd at Virginia State Capitol in Richmond for unidentified event, c. 1860s/1870s

chubachus

First Sergeant
Joined
Nov 27, 2014
Location
Virginia
richmond2.jpg

LOC claims the photo is from 1861 and "shows a crowd gathered for the Confederate Celebration at the Virginia State Capitol celebrating the victory at the first battle of Manassas." I think the photo though is postwar showing maybe and inauguration or Independence Day celebration. By David H. Anderson.

Source.
 
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LOC claims the photo is from 1861 and "shows a crowd gathered for the Confederate Celebration at the Virginia State Capitol celebrating the victory at the first battle of Manassas." I think the photo though is postwar showing maybe and inauguration or Independence Day celebration. By David H. Anderson.

Source.

Interesting picture! Why do you think it's post war? The flag maybe? Looks like the Stars and Stripes to me, but it's hard to tell. The stripes appear too thin for it to be the First National.
 
Never seen these. I'm gonna say post-war.

The flag looks like the Stars and Stripes, from what little I can make out of the people it looks like there may be a bunch of derby hats, rather than top hats lol, and I'm doubtful its an Independence Day celebration as from the trees, I would say its in the fall the way people are dressed, or just a cool winter day.

An Election day gathering awaiting the results perhaps? Or perhaps an 1878 inauguration as suggested. A probable clue to when its not would be to find out when telegraph lines were in front of the Capitol building as you can see them near the bottom of the photo. All and all the style of photography looks like a CW era camera was, but that doesn't mean it is.

I wouldn't mind knowing for sure when it was taken.
 
Interesting picture! Why do you think it's post war? The flag maybe? Looks like the Stars and Stripes to me, but it's hard to tell. The stripes appear too thin for it to be the First National.
I believe Anderson started taking and publishing photos of Richmond after the war, but this does not rule out that he bought or bartered for negatives or prints from another photographer. The format of the stereoviews are postwar but the photos could have been taken any time probably during the 1860s or 1870s.
 
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