Smithsonian American Art Museum

(Washington, DC) 

Smithsonian American Art Museum is one of the oldest buildings in Washington D.C. It served as a hospital and was present during Abraham Lincoln' presidency.

Civil War:

620,000 soldiers died in the civil war and it was about slavery and the expansion of slavery. Some veterans are still being paid after 153 years after the war. More than 60, 000 books have been written about the civil war.

The View on the James River Canal, above, was published as a painting in July of 1861. What we noticed in this painting is that all of the people were very happy and were rejoicing by the river canal. Everyone was rejoicing in the picture including slave men.

Battle of Bull Run:

The people of Washington were watching from picnics and wagons, watching what they thought was a short war.

The painting of this war was published in 1862. It shows the scene of the war. The artist of the painting wanted to portray a feeling of violence and hatred. The artist was close enough to the war to understand what was going on. Harper's Weekly influenced many people to choose what side to be on and also the newspaper company made hundreds of drawings of the war itself.

Photography in 1800s:

It took 10 minutes just to process the photo so many people wouldn't be smiling in photos during the 1800s.

In 1863, after the battle photographers took a picture of a field full of dead men from the war. The feelings people endure are sad, and melancholy. In this photo, their boots are missing from the soldiers. The comrades took the boots so they would have something to wear, and so they would have more supplies. They also took a look at their pockets and left behind things they did not want.

When we compare a drawing in 1862 and a photograph in 1863, we see people fighting in the drawing, and we see people dead or dying in 1863. From the photograph, it seems more emotional because those people who fought in the war are now dead. But, in the drawing you see people fighting. The photograph is more accurate from the drawing because, it is a real photo of what happened in effect from the war. The photographer was trying to explain how war took peoples lives.

During Reconstruction, artists painted an image of Lee's surrender of the war. From the way General Grant is standing, he seems very confident, while Lee appears saddened because he knew he lost the war.

Lee Surrendering to Grant at Appomattox