• Bain's negative dated 7/4/13. - Wystan

Gen. Sickles & Mrs. Wilmerding (LOC)

Bain News Service,, publisher.

Gen. Sickles & Mrs. Wilmerding

[between ca. 1910 and ca. 1915]

1 negative : glass ; 5 x 7 in. or smaller.

Notes:
 Title from unverified data provided by the Bain News Service on the negatives or caption cards.
Forms part of: George Grantham Bain Collection (Library of Congress).

Format: Glass negatives.

Rights Info: No known restrictions on publication.

Repository: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA, hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print

General information about the Bain Collection is available at hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.ggbain

Persistent URL: hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/ggbain.13555

Call Number: LC-B2- 2757-13

Comments and faves

  1. pennylrichardsca (42 months ago | reply)

    Daniel Sickles (1819-1914) lost his leg during the Civil War. Colorful character:
    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Sickles

    Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Disability History, and we'd love to have this added to the group!

  2. MDRails (42 months ago | reply)

    Judging by the hat and the solder escorting him, I'd guess that he's at the Grand Reunion of 1913, held at Gettysburg Pennsylvania, to mark the 50th anniversary of the battle. Sickles lost his leg, and a large portion of his command, there. He donated his lost limb to a medical museum in Washington, where he'd visit it from time to time.
    Earlier in life, he shot and killed Philip Barton Key, Francis Scott Key's son, who was having an affair with his wife. I believe he was the first American to use the temporary insanity defense.

  3. pennylrichardsca (42 months ago | reply)

    Mrs. Wilmerding is Eleanor Earle Wilmerding, who was Sickles' housekeeper and mistress. She lived with him in New York; his estranged wife and adult son lived in a nearby hotel when they were in town. Mrs. Wilmerding controlled who visited SIckles in his later years, and accompanied him on his rare public appearances (at 93, he was no longer capable of making speeches). Surprisingly, she died before him, in February 1914--he passed away a few weeks later, in April.

    www.sicklesatgettysburg.com/Sickles_Biography .html

  4. BobMeade (42 months ago | reply)

    I think MDRails could well be correct about this being related to the reunion of July 1913, especially because of the army uniform of his escort.

    He was especially of interest to the New York media becaue of the alleged missapropriation of $23,476 from the State Monument Commission of which he was Chairman, according to this report of January 27, 1913:

    query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9C04E 7D81E3AE633A...

  5. David C. Foster (42 months ago | reply)

    Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Veterans of the American Civil War, and we'd love to have this added to the group!

  6. rjones0856 (42 months ago | reply)

    Barely legible date on right side of photo says "7/-?-/13"

  7. Brett (LOC P&P) (42 months ago | reply)

    Thanks to everyone for their insightful comments about General Daniel Edgar Sickles and Eleanor Earle Wilmerding. The photograph was likely taken at the Gettysburg reunion in July 1913. The Library of Congress has a print submitted for Copyright on August 11, 1913 showing the same scene and stating that it was taken at Gettysburg. We will update our records.

  8. Wystan (39 months ago | reply)

    At Gettysburg, the central day of commemoration in 1913 was July 3. The negative of this photo bears the date July 4, 1913. Thomas Keneally, author of "Schindler's List," has written a biography of General Sickles ("American Scoundrel," 2002), in which he states that Sickles and Mrs. Wilmerding stayed overnight at Gettysburg, so that Sickles could hear the speech by President Woodrow Wilson on July 4. Therefore we may deduce that this photo shows the pair at the Gettysburg depot later on that date, preparing to entrain for the journey back to New York.

  9. wheely jojo (35 months ago | reply)

    Hi, I'm an admin for a group called wheelchairs, and we'd love to have this added to the group!

  10. ★

    MonumentBoy and WondersAce added this photo to their favorites.

  11. BobMeade (26 months ago | reply)

    A woodcut of General Sickles visiting his leg:

  12. ★

    redeyeglasses added this photo to her favorites. (26 months ago)

  13. Wystan (25 months ago | reply)

    General Sickles died on May 3, 1914. His funeral service, at New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral, was held on May 8. The body was then shipped to Washington, D. C., for burial in Arlington National Cemetery.

    Bain/LOC photos of Sickles' funeral, New York City, May 8, 1914:


  14. ★

    spiritwalker888, Reddogiedog, In_The_Right_Light, and Photo Nut 2011 added this photo to their favorites.

keyboard shortcuts: ← previous photo → next photo L view in light box F favorite < scroll film strip left > scroll film strip right ? show all shortcuts