Image is a quarter-plate tintype of seven Union soldiers taken at Warrenton Junction, Virginia in early 1862. The image is first rate with great content. The men are posed around a campfire with their mess gear and rations.  All the subjects are members of Company E, 12^th Indiana Infantry. A pencil inscription behind the image reads “BIVOUAC OF MESS NO.13 CO.E 12^TH IND. VOLS. WARRENTON JUNCT. VA. –H. WEAVER, M. B. MCCONNELL, C. M. DAVIS, LEM. HAZZARD, GEO. DEARDORFF, J. S. BAKER AND JAMES H. WILLIAMS. MAY 17, 1862”. Six of the seven men are posed kneeling on the ground while one stands at rear. Behind the group are two stacks of three muskets each. Meandering through the left background is a small stream. Under magnification the stream can be seen to flow into the middle background before disappearing.  In the right background there are two wagons and what may be a small knoll or the outer wall of some earthworks. The center background has some trees and a lone figure of an unidentified soldier.

Of course the main focus is the seven men kneeling around their campfire. The first man on the left is James H. Weaver. He wears a forage cap with a very visible “E” on the top. He wears his leather accoutrements and has what looks to be a pipe clenched in his teeth. He holds a plate with food and a fork in one hand while with the other he is reaching into a tall pot holding his small tin cup and a spoon. Next is Nathan B. McConnell. He is also wearing his leather accouterments and with one hand he munches on a piece of hardtack while in the other hand he holds his cup. Next is the lone standing figure in the group, Sergeant Charles M. Davis. Unlike the other men who wear sack coats Davis is wearing a frock coat. He also wears his waist belt and cap box. Davis holds an army issue cup in one hand and a small bottle in the other. He has them arranged so that he appears to be pouring the contents of the bottle into his cup.

Next is Lemuel Hazzard who wears his forage cap at a rakish angle. The top of the cap looks to have a Company letter inside a wreath. He supports his plate and food on top of his knee. Next to him is George Deardorff the only one of the group wearing an overcoat. He holds a small tin cup in his hands. The next man in the group is Joseph S. Baker. Like most of the others Baker wears his cartridge box with the sling plate prominently displayed on his chest and his waist belt with cap box. He looks to have just pulled his frying pan off the fire and is using a knife or fork to stir or flip the contents. The last man in the group is James H. Williams. Barely visible on the top of his forage cap is a Company letter “E.” He wears his waist belt with empty bayonet scabbard. In one hand he holds a hardtack cracker while in the other he holds his Army issue cup. Visible in the foreground are various pieces of mess equipment such as plates, pots and one or two ration cans. The pot on the “fire” and the one Weaver is reaching into with his cup, look to be two of the three different sized pots the Army issued to each Company. The kettle in front of Williams is probably something the mess picked up in their travels.

The condition of the image is good. The glass covering the photograph is long gone and the result is that there are numerous small scratches on the surface but they really do not hurt the image. Despite the little imperfections everything can be clearly seen. There is a small area of cloudiness below the wood fire in the foreground. This was caused by the chemicals used to make the image and has probably always been there.

The 12^th Indiana had two periods of service, the first for 1 year and the second for 3 years. During its first term of service from May 11, 1861 to May 19, 1862 the regiment was assigned to Bank’s Army of the Shenandoah where they were involved in a number of small skirmishes and picket duty. It was near the end of this first enlistment that the photo here was taken. The regiment was immediately reorganized to serve 3 years being mustered in on August 17, 1862. This second enlistment was more active. The regiment saw service at the battle of Richmond in Kentucky, Vicksburg, Missionary Ridge, Resaca, New Hope Church, Dallas, Kennesaw Mountain, Atlanta, The March to the Sea, Columbia and Bentonville. During its 3 year service the regiment lost 293 men killed, died of wounds and disease.

Of the seven men in the photograph only two stayed with the 12^th for their 3 year term. James H. Weaver served as a Private during his first term. In the second he was a Sergeant in Company I and rose to be a 2^nd Lieutenant before being wounded at Atlanta on July 22, 1864. He died two days later on the 24^th and is buried in Marietta National Cemetery. The other man who reenlisted was Lemuel Hazzard. After serving as a Private in his first term he, like Weaver, also began his second term as a Sergeant in Company I. He rose to the rank of Captain and was discharged on June 8, 1865. He moved to Missouri after the war and died there in 1904. Sergeant Charles M. Davis died within days of this photo being taken and is buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Warsaw, Indiana. McConnell and Baker stayed in Indiana and both are buried in Oakwood Cemetery with Sergeant Davis. McConnell died in 1920 and Baker in 1923. Not much is known about Deardorff and Williams other than they served their country for one year and were immortalized in this photograph with 5 of their friends.

The image comes in a split full case with brass mat and frame. They each show light to moderate wear. Also with the image is some Internet research done on the men pictured.

This is really a wonderful image of camp life and gives a first rate view of

what the soldiers were using in the field for cooking and eating.

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