Relic hunters in action?

[ThehosGendar]

Gents,

While at my usual obsessive-compulsive scouring of LOC images, and inspired by the discovery of the can of Dinty Moore/rice pudding at the foot of Little Round Top, I decided to give a look at the other images of the LRT series.

The stereograph, "LC-B815- 267 Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. View of Round Top" by James Gibson...



... revealed something interesting in the lower right half.



Two men, one wearing a coat with a rather full bag slung over his shoulder, and another to his right wearing a vest. Could these men possibly be relic hunters? An interesting possibilty!

[55th VVI]

Re: Relic hunters in action?

Jason,
First off, I just want to say, I love your posts. The photographic research you do is very cool. That being said, I am worried about your psychological well being. I think you may either be suffering from LOC photo gallery addiction, or an OCD need to find the most intricate of detail in every photo you view (hyper-vigilance perhaps? lol). It might also be too much caffeine. If this is the case, there are many de-cafe alternatives on the market that are just as tasty as the real thing. In any case, thank you for taking the time to find us all such great images.

[roundshot]

Re: Relic hunters in action?

Another great pic! Jason, I sure wish you'd blow up the "Cumberland Landing" photo that was on another thread (the one with the forge in foreground), with the aim of getting a close look at the ranks of Federals in the background. I think these would give some interesting details of Feds in 1862 and might even show markings on the knapsacks. How about it?

Bob Williams
Reilly's NC Btty

[hardtack1864]

Re: Relic hunters in action?

That bag looks quite full that the one man is carrys, who knows what what it could be, maybe Cattle drive chili or woolrich uniforms. :tounge_sm

[Thomas R. Snead]

Re: Relic hunters in action?

How are you sure that the guy standing next to the dude with the bag isn't also carrying a bag, the photo is blurry? And isn't it also true that these guys could have been part of the "Photographer's Party". The guy with the bag had to have known the photo was being taken because he is standing perfectly still.

Gents,

While at my usual obsessive-compulsive scouring of LOC images, and inspired by the discovery of the can of Dinty Moore/rice pudding at the foot of Little Round Top, I decided to give a look at the other images of the LRT series.

The stereograph, "LC-B815- 267 Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. View of Round Top" by James Gibson...



... revealed something interesting in the lower right half.



Two men, one wearing a coat with a rather full bag slung over his shoulder, and another to his right wearing a vest. Could these men possibly be relic hunters? An interesting possibilty!

[1stMaine]

Re: Relic hunters in action?

Comrades,

On a related subject, vis-a-vis Gettysburg and relics, there's an interesting story told to me by one of the NPS Rangers about the 50th anniversary and reunion there.
Seems like the hosts decided that the old fellows attending might like to go out about the battlefield and reminisce about what went on. To "spice" things up a bit, a crew went around the battlefield in the days before hand "salting" the ground with miniballs and shell fragments for the veterans to "find". Groups were then allowed to keep whatever "relics" they recovered, as a souvenir of their reunion.
One has to question, ofcourse, how many of these post-battle relics are still being sold and traded as actual relics of the battle?
Anyway, I just find that story very interesting, and wonder if it was done anywhere else.
respects,

[markj]

Re: Relic hunters in action?

The short answer, again, is that we'll likely never know. The two individuals shown might have simply accompanied Gibson and have been placed in the photo to "provide scale" and "scenic effect."

I don't have Frassanito's "Early Photography at Gettysburg" handy but I believe the Gibson images were made a considerable time (at least several weeks) after the Gettysburg engagement. If so, the battlefield had by that time been pretty well picked clean of desirable items lying within easy reach of scavengers although, of course, human remains and equipment continued to be found for months or even years afterward in areas off the beaten track.

Nice image to speculate about, though!

Regards,

Mark Jaeger