JPK Huson 1863
Brev. Brig. Gen'l
- Joined
- Feb 14, 2012
- Location
- Central Pennsylvania
Brig. General John Joseph Abercrombie- white beard, smack in the middle of the group, at St. Peter's wildly historic church, White House landing, on the Pamunkey River, Virginia. A young civilian, a black man, guessing employed by the army, sits on the ground with ' baggage ' the topic of this photo. It should be! Look at it!
But but but..... why?
Do you see them, bottom right? Seemed unlikely, officers posing with dead horses. And very ' iew '. Dead horses all the heck all over this war. Why in a line of baggage, what looks to be a tent, and a boot sticking out of the tent?
Yep. Dead. Horses. If I were not such a shy person, I might add the one on the left looks like it has a large, plaid, homespun hat, tied with a ribbon. But that would be even more silly than General Patrick posing with two dead horses, a boot and a tent, in front of an historical church in Virginia.
Boot and the other nameless objects?
White House Landing on the Pamunkey River, 1862. Brigadier General John J. Abercrombie, launched into his second war, commands troops of the First Corp's Second Brigade. A soldier's diary entry at the time of this photo describes them as ' some Ohio soldiers'.
St. Peter's Church is part of historically significant " White House ", Virginia, at the time of this photo not yet burned to the ground. Filled with George and Mary Custis Washington antiques and relics, Mary Custis Lee had been forced to abandon it, leaving a note requesting it be protected. It was. Well, until withdrawal orders were somehow misinterpreted- and it was torched. St. Peter's Episcopal Church may or may not be- according to who one believes- where Father and Mother America were married.
You can't just post this without some background. General Abercrombie and officers at St. Peter's Church, White House Landing, Virginia. We're familiar with the LoC and National Archives photograph. But why, in Heaven's name, are these men posing with dead horses? Appears to be sabers stuck in the ground behind each horse, too- making it more macabre, if it could be
We've seen dead horses. On their sides, stiffened legs in profile, distinctive monuments to war's cruel demands on these loveliest of beasts. I hadn't really looked at Abercrombie's various baggage- and did. A ' horsey ' person all my life, boy, you cannot mistake this horrifying image- and then another, more grotesque, next to it. Goodness. But why? Does anyone have any idea, please?
I'm sorry but this gentleman looks a little bemused, too. He's looking up past a saddle an perhaps another tent?
Another LoC image of St. Peter's, from the Peninsular Campaign, sand horses. Thankfully.
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