The Last Full Measure: Civil War Photographs from the Liljenquist Family Collection
The Collectors and the Collection
In 2010, local businessman Tom Liljenquist and sons Jason, Brandon, and Christian began donating more than 700 ambrotypes and tintypes of Union and Confederate Civil War soldiers to the Library of Congress.
The Photographic Processes
The invention of wet collodion photography processes in the 1850s led to the development of two new kinds of photographs—ambrotypes and tintypes.
Photographers and Their Studios
Photographic portraiture flourished during the Civil War. Ambrotype and tintype photographs were not only affordable, but a finished product could be produced in a matter of minutes.
Unidentified insignia on hats, buttons, coats, and belt buckles may provide information about the various regiment in which the soldiers served.