Item No. 8556864

A CDV portrait of Brigadier General Henry J. Hunt, best known for his command of Union artillery at the Battle of Gettysburg. The general is identified on both the front and reverse in the hand of Bernard J. D. Irwin, the noted army surgeon, naturalist, and Medal of Honor recipient. Irwin incorrectly labeled the general as “L. C. Hunt.” The photographer’s imprint is that of E. & H. T. Anthony with credit to Mathew Brady’s original negative. Measures about 2 3/8” x 4” and has slightly trimmed corners.

Hunt was one of the Union Army’s most capable artillery officers, serving as Chief of Artillery for the Army of the Potomac and playing a decisive role at Gettysburg, where his careful management of artillery helped repulse Confederate assaults, including Pickett’s Charge. A career officer, Hunt graduated from West Point in 1839 and remained in service through the Mexican War and Civil War. While Bernard J. D. Irwin served primarily in the western territories, it is likely that the two became acquainted in the prewar army.