Civil War CDVsFirst Civil War Casualty Colonel Elmer Ellsworth

c. 1860, CDV of Elmer Ellsworth, first casualty of the Civil War, Very Fine.
This studio photo CDV, measuring 4" x 2.5" and without a printers name, depicts a young man dressed in civilian clothes and great coat, holding a cane and wearing what appears to be a military cap. Below the photo someone has written in pencil "E. E. Ellsworth." On the back, another hand has written in pencil "Colonel Elmer Ellsworth 1111 (?) N. Y. Vol." Ellsworth is said to have been the first casualty of the Civil War, after being shot and killed at the Marshall House Inn in Alexandria, Virginia on May 24th, 1861. President Lincoln, who was a close friend of Ellsworth, was deeply affected by his death. This is a nice clear portrait, with a little foxing in the bottom margin, and one area of discoloration in the lower left corner. This would make a great addition to a Civil War Collection.

Elmer Ephraim Ellsworth (1837-1861) is considered by some to have been the first casualty of the Civil War. On May 24, 1861, the day after Virginia seceded, Col. Ellsworth led his men uncontested down the streets of Alexandria, Virginia. He ordered some of his men to take the railroad station while he and a few other soldiers went to secure the telegraph office. While doing this, Ellsworth noticed a Confederate flag flying above the Marshall House Inn. He and four others quickly went up the stairs. Ellsworth cut down the flag and was on the way down the stairs when the owner, James W. Jackson, killed him with a shotgun blast to the chest. Corporal Francis (Frank) Brownell of Troy, New York, killed the innkeeper immediately. Ellsworth was later awarded a Medal of Honor for his actions on that day, as was Brownell.