Item No. 4772343

A pair of CDV portraits of Captain James Allen Bates and his wife, Laura Comstock Bates, from the family album of Dr. Bernard J. D. Irwin, US Army surgeon and Medal of Honor recipient. Bates’s portrait bears the imprint of John Cadwallader, Detroit, while Laura’s was made by Powelson & Co., Detroit. The two were wed in 1870, and these portraits likely date to around that time. During the Civil War, Bates served with the 12th New York Infantry, participating in the battles of Gaines’ Mill, Malvern Hill, and Antietam. He was severely wounded during the war and subsequently served in the Veteran Reserve Corps and with the Freedmen’s Bureau in Richmond. Bates received brevet promotions to major and lieutenant colonel for his service. After the war he was appointed captain in the newly organized 43rd US Infantry in 1866 and served at Fort Wayne, Detroit, during the same period that B. J. D. Irwin was post surgeon there. He married Laura Comstock in 1870 and retired from the Army that year.