Unique Soldiers Archive - KIA at Resaca

This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 8/31/2008

E. ERVINE MCDOWELL (1844-1864) Union officer, captain of the 15th Kentucky Infantry, was heavily engaged at Perryville, Stones River, Chickamauga, killed leading his men under heavy fire at Resaca on May 14, 1864. An exceptional lot of illustrated letters, photos, etc. from this boy-captain, includes: a carte-de-visite photograph of McDowell in uniform, ca 1861, backstamp by Webster, Louisville, an unmounted CDV photo of his brother Maj. William McDowell, also in the 15th Ky., likewise an unmounted CDV of the regiment's commander, Col. Curran Pope (KIA 11/5/1862), Don Carlos Buell and Henry Halleck; a five cent banknote from the Augusta Savings Bank with a note in a family member's hand (likely his brother, Major McDowell), "Found in Irvine's pocket when kille[d]"; a mounted albumen, 8 1/2" x 6", captioned in the same hand as previous: " ... Head Quarters of Brig. Genl. R. W. Johnson 1st Div. 14th A.C. Chattanooga, Feb. 1864" where McDowell served on Johnson's staff, shows two brick structures with three officers standing before them and a stand of arms at left, and a photo of the same size, same hand's captioning, reading: "Brought from Chattanooga by Orvine, Feb. 1864. Bridge over the Tennessee River at Bridgeport, February, 1864", shows the wrecked bridge with what appears to be a contraband slave leading a group of horses in the foreground. Of additional interest are four pages of original drawings McDowell sent to his brother, one signed and dated "Cap Pope, Dec., 1861. The first depicts two images of "Our pickets after night" showing one picket about to boilt a complete bird as another warns off an intruding cow. At bottom, soldiers amuse themselves in their tent as one soldier is taunts a sleeping comrade. The second drawing, in pencil, Chattanooga, Oct., 1863, bears two images, one showing officers relaxing their tent as their negro servants argue outside, the lower image shows the servants fleeing from an exploding shell, exclaiming: " ... nigger, dis place too hot for white man, let alone colored citizens ... " The third drawing is dated Murfreesboro, Jan., 1863, six comical images showing a pipe falling on a man's head, a man pulling a pig by the tail as another eats a rat ("The way to go foraging"), and images of his cook and the cook's horse. The final drawing shows soldiers falling over each other to answer the "Long roll", one thumbing his nose at an officer. Finally, there is a well-executed pencil drawing of a river scene, 9 1/2" x 6", possibly also done by McDowell.

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