The Photo

In the above photo from left to right is Lt. James B. Washington, an unnamed black boy, and Capt. George A. Custer. Washington was with the confederacy, Custer with the union.

The photo is seldom if ever seen - even by Civil War and Custer enthusiasts. The reason being because it is simply rarely shown.

My Discovery

The first time I came across the photo wasn't while studying the Civil War in high school. I didn't see it in college courses. I didn't see it in numerous books about Custer. I didn't even see it in Custer photo books. I say all this because it could be considered one of the most interesting photos of the Civil War and should be presented thus by historians.

The photo is one of the most interesting of the war because it visually and concisely sums up the war by depicting the two warring sides and "The Cause".

I came across it was while I was reading a book about Custer. In it a very interesting story was told about a photo that for some reason was not included in the book. I had to see it. I searched for it on the internet and found it.

The Story Behind The Photo

The story goes that Custer and Lieutenant James B. Washington were classmates at West Point. Washington (from Virginia) would leave school before graduating when Virginia seceded from the Union. Custer would graduate. Both would soon be fighting on opposite sides in the Civil War. About a year into the war, the two former classmates met again.

On May 31, 1862, during the battle of Fair Oaks (Virginia), Lt. Washington was captured by Union forces. Upon his capture, he asked for Custer who was serving on McClellan's staff. Custer met with Washington, and requested of McClellan that Washington be his guest while he was kept among them. McClellan allowed.

During Washington's time as Custer's guest, a camp photographer spotted the two men sitting on a log talking. He prepared to photograph them. Washington noticed this and called out to a young black boy and placed him between the himself and Custer. He then said: "The picture ought to be called 'Both sides. The cause.' " And that is how it appeared in Harper's Weekly.

The story does not end there. Later in the war, Washington's mother (who was very anti-Yankee) would learn that Custer was passing by her estate. She sent word she wished to speak to him. She not only thanked him for his kindness toward her son, but gave him a button from a coat that George Washington had worn as a token of her appreciation.

Below is a photo (which is more often seen than the other) that the photographer took apparently during the same sitting as the above one.

Sources

• Custer, George A., Elizabeth Bacon Custer, and Marguerite Merington. "Major General." The Custer Story; the Life and Intimate Letters of General George A. Custer and His Wife Elizabeth. New York: Devin-Adair, 1950. N. pag. Print.
• "Custer Captures a Classmate." Custer Captures a Classmate. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2014. - http://www.civilwarphotography.org/index.php/3-d-photographs-exhibit/72