More on the Nimrod Burke Image

The image tentatively identified as Nimrod Burke has appeared on the cover of one book and a PBS program according to Tim Kernan, who currently owns the tintype. In both instances, it is listed as an unidentified soldier. The photo may have also appeared in other publications. How the identity of the image came to be lost and found again is a developing story. My working scenario, based upon interviews by telephone and email with Burke ancestor Henry Robert Burke, Peggie and Tim Kernan, members of the Washington County (Ohio) Historical Society and others:

A member of the Burke family who did not appreciate the sentimental and historical value of the photograph sold the original tintype as many as twenty-five years ago to an unknown person or persons. At the time of this transaction, the identity was lost. At some point the family received a photograph of the original tintype. This copy print was made with a non-digital camera not from the original, but from a reproduction printed in some publication, perhaps a book. The family has come to think of this copy print as the original photo of Nimrod Burke. This copy print has since been scanned and uploaded to Henry Robert Burke's web site.

The tintype was sold at some point to noted collector Herb Peck Jr., a Nashville, Tenn., photographer who worked in Vanderbilt University's Department of Fine Arts. This was one of Peck's first purchases in the early 1980s after his original collection was stolen. A year or two before his passing in 2004, he sold it to Tim Kernan.

This scenario is subject to revision as more information is obtained.

Also unresolved is a uniform issue: Burke is listed as having served as a sergeant during his enlistment. The soldier pictured here wears a corporal's chevrons. I'll be checking Burke's military service records at the National Archives to determine if he ranked as a corporal and sergeant.

James Henry Ward and the 36th Ohio Infantry

James Henry Ward is one of a large number of African American men and women connected with the military in an unofficial capacity during the war. You will not find their names in any database, and yet they were a vital part of the Union armies. Many served as personal servants, cooks, teamsters, and other support roles.

Ward's role is unclear. He is not listed as an official member of the Thirty-sixth Ohio Infantry, although a period photograph of this African American identifies him as a member of Company A of the regiment. In the photograph, he wears a military jacket.

Ward may have been a personal servant to an officer in Company A. Two captains commanded the company, Hiram Fosdick Devol and James Gage Barker. A number of lieutenants are on the rolls, including Augustus T. Ward (the surname suggests a possible connection), Jonathan N Patton, James C. Selby, and Andrew J. Temple.

It is possible he was connected to the Ward family of Marietta, Ohio.

I'd like to know more about James Henry Ward and his role with the Thirty-sixth. Hope you can help.

MIA: Nimrod Burke, 23rd USCT

Nimrod Burke stares into the camera, dressed in his army uniform complete with corporal's chevrons and holding a revolver. Burke, a soldier in the Twenty-third U.S. Colored Infantry (USCT), is the great-great grandfather of Henry Robert Burke, an author and historian in Marietta, Ohio.

Some years ago, Burke arranged to have a photograph made of the original image of his Civil War ancestor. A scan of this photograph is pictured here, and on a web page profile of the veteran. The original image, which appears to be a sixth plate tintype, was owned by Burke's cousin.

Today, the location of the original photograph is unknown.

One possible scenario is that the image was purchased by or given to well-known collector Jerry Duvall. On Duvall's passing, his collection was quickly dispersed. This photo may have been sold to a coin collector, at auction, or at the Ohio Civil War Show in Mansfield. I suspect the image is in the hands of a private collector who may or may not know the name of the soldier.

The leads I've pursued have dried up. If you know of the whereabouts of this original image, please let me know. I want to use this photograph in my forthcoming book, but am unable to do so without permission from the owner.

"Villain Damn Him"

Spent part of this evening reading the Civil War diary of William A. Skiles, published under the title Letters to Home. Skiles was a private in Company G of the Fifth Illinois Cavalry. His captain, Benjamin B. Hopkins, is one of the soldiers I am currently researching. I found a great reference to Hopkins, which will be included in his forthcoming profile. I also found an interesting reference to Clement Vallandigham, the Ohio Democratic congressman booted out of the Buckeye State into Confederate territory for his outspoken support of states rights and the withdrawal of Southern states from the Union. Pvt. Skiles refers to Vallandigham (shown here in this portrait from the Library of Congress) as "Villain damn him," a pithy word play on the congressman's last name.

A Google search reveals one other reference to this nickname, made by a soldier in the Ninth New Jersey Infantry and noted in Beneath the Starry Flag.