Massachusetts Historical Society: MHS Gallery

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Annie Adams Fields

Daguerreotype photograph by Southworth & Hawes, 1853
Visible image: 7.5 cm x 6 cm; in case: 9.5 cm x 8 cm

This daguerreotype, taken by notable Boston photographers Albert S. Southworth and Josiah J. Hawes, depicts Annie Adams Fields in profile. Daguerreotypes, the earliest form of photography, are reversed images captured on light-sensitized silver-plated sheets of copper. Though these early portraits were physically uncomfortable, time-consuming, and expensive to make, they quickly became extraordinarily popular. Photographed a year before her marriage to publisher James T. Fields in 1854, Fields was an author and social reformer who made her home the center of literary Boston. The Fields's circle of friends included American authors published by her husband in the Atlantic Monthly, as well as European writers who visited Boston. In addition to her role as a literary hostess, Fields wrote biographical sketches and edited the letters of authors Harriet Beecher Stowe, Sarah Orne Jewett, and Celia Thaxter.
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The Branded Hand

The Branded Hand of Captain Jonathan Walker
Daguerreotype photograph by Southworth & Hawes, 1845
Visible image: 6.5 cm x 5.5 cm; in half-case: 8 cm x 9.5 cm

This dramatic photograph depicts the letters "S.S.," for slave stealer, branded on the hand of abolitionist Capt. Jonathan W. Walker. In 1844, Walker attempted to assist seven escaped slaves by sailing them from Florida to the West Indies. He became ill and his crew was untrained in sailing, so they were "rescued" by a pro-slavery sloop that took them back to Florida. The slaves were returned to their masters, and Walker was arrested. He spent one year in solitary confinement, paid $600 in fines, and received this brand on his hand. The event did not deter Walker's efforts and he spent many more years traveling the country to lecture on abolition. The photograph, taken by the prominent Boston daguerreotype studio of Southworth and Hawes, is a reverse image; although Walker's right hand is depicted, the mirror image that is produced on glass makes it look like it is his left.
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John Brown

Daguerreotype photograph attributed to John Adams Whipple, 1856
Visible oval image: 9 cm x 6.5 cm; in leather case: 12 cm x 9.5 cm

This 1856 daguerreotype photograph by John A. Whipple depicts the abolitionist John Brown, best known for leading the raid on Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia). Due to the violent tension between pro- and anti-slavery advocates, Brown came to believe that the only way to end slavery in the United States was through force. In October of 1856, he led a group of men to capture the weapons arsenal in Harpers Ferry. Brown wrongly believed many more would assist them, but the uprising was unsuccessful and Brown was captured and hung. He showed no regret through to his death, saying, "The crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away but with blood."
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Sergeant Henry F. Steward

Hand-colored ambrotype photograph by unknown photographer, 1863
10.5 cm x 8 cm
From the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment photographs

This ambrotype photograph depicts Sgt. Henry F. Steward standing at attention with his sword drawn, hand-colored trousers and buttons highlighting his uniform. A 23 year old farmer from Adrian, Michigan, Steward enlisted on 4 April 1863 and was mustered in on 23 April. Like all black officers in the Civil War, Steward served as a non-commissioned officer in the Massachusetts 54th Infantry Regiment, the first African-American regiment raised in the North. Steward died of disease at the regimental hospital on Morris Island, South Carolina, on 27 September 1863. His estate was paid a $50 state bounty.
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Nora Saltonstall

Eleanor "Nora" Saltonstall at helm of the Comanche
Photograph by unknown photographer, undated
10.8 cm x 8.3 cm

This photograph depicts Eleanor "Nora" Saltonstall, of Massachusetts at the helm of Comanche. During World War I, she joined the American Red Cross in Paris. She worked with refugees and in hospitals, and later became the chauffeur for a mobile hospital along the western front in France, the site of the German offensives in the spring of 1918. Saltonstall earned the Croix de Guerre for her service. She wrote of her work in a 20 October 1918 letter, "This is certainly a very interesting life -- I would not miss all the Experiences that we are having now for anything." Saltonstall returned to the U.S. in March of 1919. She died that same year at the age of 24 from typhoid fever while traveling to the west coast with friends.
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Annie Adams Fields

The Branded Hand

John Brown

Sergeant Henry F. Steward

Nora Saltonstall