Item #7087 Gettysburg Battle-Field. John B. Bachelder.

Sign up to receive email notices of recent acquisitions.

Bachelder, John B.

Gettysburg Battle-Field.

New York: Endicott & Co. Lith., 1863. Lithograph, 14.5” x 36” plus title and margins, recently hand-colored to style.

A spectacular and remarkably informative depiction of the Battle of Gettysburg, bearing the endorsements of Union commander George G. Meade and other notable figures.

John B. Bachelder (1825–1894) was a portrait and landscape painter who produced some thirty-five city and topographical views between 1854–1863, most of them—like the present view—printed by Endicott of New York. His career as a view-maker effectively came to an end in 1863, as his interest in the Battle of Gettysburg became all-consuming, leading him to become the 19th century’s most notable historian of the battle. Indeed, from the date of this view, he would devote the next 30 years of his life to researching the battle, documenting its most minute details. He conducted countless interviews with battle participants—both Union and Confederate—to ascertain the position of all units engaged in the battle; assumed a leading role in erecting battlefield monuments; commissioned a panoramic painting of the battle and toured the country with it, lecturing along the way; wrote both a guide-book and a history of the battle; organized reunions; and served as Superintendent of Tablets and Legends for the Gettysburg Battlefield Memorial Association.

Having spent a year with the Army of the Potomac documenting various battles, Bachelder arrived at Gettysburg a few days after the battle ended, well-prepared for the immense task at hand. Acting entirely on his own initiative, he went to extraordinary lengths to gather information by touring and examining the battlefield on horseback, sketching, and so forth. The first fruit of his extensive labor was this large and very impressive view, published in late 1863. Here Bachelder depicts the battlefield in encyclopedic detail, assuming the bird’s eye view maker’s characteristically elevated and imaginary point of view, in this case in the east looking west, using shading to indicate the topography and showing roads, lanes, wooded areas, the boundaries of fields, etc.

The view simultaneously depicts all the three days of battle (July 1st, 2nd, and 3rd). Each day is coded with different colors for the Federal and Confederate troops, as indicated in the lower-left margin. Corps badges indicate the division of troops and the commanders of each, while numbers preceding corps badges denote the different Federal Brigades. Beneath many names, Bachelder indicates status in the battle: "Col. Vincent (killed)," for instance, "Hood's Div. (wounded)," etc. Also included are such granular details as taverns, fences, houses (and which particular family inhabited them), schools, mills, etc.

Appearing in the title margin are a plan of the Gettysburg National Cemetery, and endorsements by the eminent Union Commander George G. Meade and other officials attesting to the accuracy of Bachelder’s work. The Meade endorsement reads: "I am perfectly satisfied with the accuracy with which the topography is delineated and the position of the troops laid down." The facsimile signatures of A. Doubleday, John Newton, Winf. St. Hancock, D.B. Birney, Geo. Sykes, John Sedgwick, O.O. Howard, A.S. Williams, and H.W. Slocum appear below the following statement: "The positions of the troops of our respective commands represented upon this picture have been arranged under our immediate direction and may be relied upon as substantially correct." Another set of five notable individuals endorses the "remarkable fidelity" of the view. There are two versions of this print, one that includes more sky, with billowing clouds, and this more focused version.

A stunning bird's-eye view of the Battle of Gettysburg, published within months of the events depicted, inaugurating Bachelder’s three decades of devotion to the documentation of one of the seminal events in American history.

REFERENCES: Stephenson, Civil War Maps, #321; Reps #3423; Grim & Block, Torn in Two, pp. 134-5; Rumsey #3655 (black & white edition).

CONDITION: Very good, expertly repaired tear 4” into image at lower right, a few small areas of loss to margins expertly filled in.

Offered in partnership with Boston Rare Maps of Northampton, Mass.

Item #7087

Sold

See all items in Maps, Prints & Drawings
See all items by John B. Bachelder