Collections : [University of Michigan William L. Clements Library]

The collection consists of 100 albumen prints (23 x 17.7 cm) in two volumes (both 42.5 x 33 cm). Each volume has a brown leather cover with brass clasps. Each volume contains 50 mounted, consecutively-numbered albumen prints depicting the operations of the Army of the Potomac during and in the immediate aftermath of the American Civil War.

The collection consists of 100 (23 x 17.7 cm) albumen prints in two volumes (both 42.5 x 33 cm). Each volume has a brown leather cover with brass clasps. Both volumes contain 50 mounted, consecutively-numbered albumen prints depicting the operations of the Army of the Potomac during and in the immediate aftermath of the American Civil War.

Every image is preceded by a paragraph of text describing the context and background of the photograph that follows. The photographs cover the period between March of 1862 and June of 1865. Readers should be aware that the photographs in the album are not arranged in an exact chronological sequence; many, but not all of the photographs have dates associated with them. The majority of the photographs depict sites in Virginia, but photographs from Maryland, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina are also present.

The Henry Benton Austin collection contains letters that Austin wrote to a woman named "Hettie" and a manuscript map depicting the Battle of Ball's Bluff. Austin commented on his experiences while serving in the Union Army during the Civil War and expressed his displeasure with a transient lifestyle.

The Henry Benton Austin collection contains 3 letters that Austin wrote to a woman named "Hettie" and a manuscript map depicting the Battle of Ball's Bluff. The map, drawn with ink and pencil, shows geographic landmarks such as the Potomac River and the road to Leesburg, Virginia, as well as picket lines, battery positions, and the Confederate Army's furthest point of advancement ([1861]). Two of Austin's letters pertain to his war service (January 26, 1862, and undated). He reflected on the Battle of Ball's Bluff, which he referred to as "a day of human butchery," and described a boat carrying wounded soldiers. Austin reported that his unit had been equipped with Enfield rifles, complained about poor drinking water, and mentioned soldiers' difficulty drilling with heavy uniforms, knapsacks, and cartridge boxes in high heat. In his final letter, also undated and unsigned, Austin discussed his case of the "blues" and dissatisfaction with a "roving wandering kind of life."