Item No. 6917793

There’s a whole lot going on in this fascinating 1864 albumen image by photographer Timothy O’Sullivan. It is a field workshop belonging to the Union Army’s 9th Corps. The men to the left are repairing leather tack, while those in the center are wheelwrights. Among the leatherworkers, note the large 9th Corps badge on one man’s hat. A toolbox next to another worker has two emblems of a number 1 within a shield, suggesting it belongs to the 1st Division of the 9th Corps. On the right-hand side of the image, several white and black men are utilizing an apparatus to shoe a horse. Another copy of this image is in the collection of the National Archives (no. 533344), and the identification is made from that print. Interestingly, however, that version doesn’t show the uniformed black soldier at the far right who holds the straps that are securing the horse’s hind legs. The image is unmounted and measures about 10” x 7 1/2”. Small chip along top edge. It also has some light wrinkling typical of unmounted albumens.