Review of "Custer in Photographs: A Visual Portrait of one of America’s most intriguing Civil War heroes," by D. Mark Katz

 Review of

Custer in Photographs: A Visual Portrait of one of America’s most intriguing Civil War heroes, by D. Mark Katz ISBN 0517027453

Five out of five stars

History via the photograph

 Few people of the nineteenth century are more legendary that George Armstrong Custer. To most people, he is known as the military commander defeated and killed at the Little Big Horn river. There are some that believe his defeat was due to arrogance and incompetence. Yet that is a difficult argument to make, Custer was deservedly cited for bravery during the American Civil War, rising to the rank of general when he was only 23. He died in battle when he was only 36.

 One fact that I did not know is that Custer was one of the most photographed people of the nineteenth century. Even though his military career lasted only a quarter-century, he appears in 158 known photographs, contrasted with the 122 known images featuring Abraham Lincoln.

 This book is strictly a photographic history of Custer, the only text beyond the introduction and the ending chronology are detailed descriptions of the contents of the photos. Although he is often depicted as a serious military man, there are a few that present him as a bit of a comic. If you have an interest in Custer, fifty of the photos in this collection are published for the first time. Therefore, there are things here that you likely have not seen before.