Item No. 7015679

CDV image of Union General David Hunter, by photography studio D. Appleton & Co., New York. The image has been trimmed down to about 2 1/4” x 3 1/4”.

A bold and controversial figure of the Civil War, Major General David Hunter is best remembered for his early and uncompromising stand against slavery and his leadership of Black troops in Union service. A career officer and West Point graduate (Class of 1822), Hunter gained national attention when, in 1862, he issued General Order No. 11, declaring slaves in Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida to be free—months before the Emancipation Proclamation. President Lincoln, concerned about political backlash, quickly rescinded the order, but Hunter’s bold move cemented his legacy as a radical abolitionist in uniform. Hunter also organized and commanded the First South Carolina Volunteers, one of the first Union regiments composed of formerly enslaved men, and later led a destructive raid through the Shenandoah Valley in 1864. Though criticized for his harsh tactics—particularly the burning of the Virginia Military Institute—he remained unapologetic in his war on slavery and secession. Personally close to Abraham Lincoln, Hunter also served on the military commission that tried and condemned the Lincoln assassination conspirators.