Two women trimming a man's hair. Alfred R. Waud. Between 1860 and 1865. Prints and Photographs Division. LC-USZ62-65335. bibliographic record

Original drawings by artists such as Alfred Waud and Edwin Forbes in the Civil War Drawing Collection (1,600 drawings, 1860-65) enable researchers to examine original art work intended for use in illustrated newspapers such as Harper's Weekly and Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper as the publications attempted to portray this cataclysmic event for the reading public.

Women do not appear prolifically in the collection, but it includes a few scenes of women on the home front or interacting with the military and some sketches that include African American women in their quarters or on the move toward Union territory.

African American refugees coming into Union lines near Culpeper Court House, Va. Edwin Forbes. 1863 Nov. 8th. Prints and Photographs Division. LC-USZ62-15661. bibliographic record

Searching the Collection:

Catalog records for the drawings can be found in the Prints and Photographs Online Catalog. The collection does not have its own listing in the online catalog, but items can be retrieved by searching the phrase “Civil War drawing collection” in combination with names or subjects. Digitized images accompany many of the records.

Go to the Prints and Photographs Online Catalog