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Burial Ground of Soldiers Unknown Photographs by John Reekie and Alexander Gardner/Library of Congress, and Michael Melford
Union soldiers killed in the 1864 battle at Cold Harbor near Richmond, Virginia, stayed where they fell for ten months until burial teams could collect their decayed remains (historical photo). Untold thousands of the Civil War's 200,000 battlefield victims received hasty burials in mass graves; others lay unburied for months. Today the Cold Harbor battlefield (present-day photo) is at risk of vanishing beneath encroaching sprawl, one case among many where Americans must weigh the value of developing land against preserving the battlegrounds of the Civil War.
Photo Fast Facts
Camera: Canon 1DS Film Type: Digital Lens: 28mm Speed and F-Stop: One second @ f/22
Weather Conditions: Cloudy Time of Day: Morning Lighting Techniques: Natural light Special Equipment or Comments: Tripod and long exposure
