Wounded Confederate Soldier, 1865

The most published photograph of a wounded Civil War soldier is this image of confederate Private Columbus Rush, Company C, 21st Georgia. This poignant image of the young soldier with bi-lateral mid-thigh amputations was taken at the Army Medical Museum. He was wounded during the battle of Petersburg, Virginia during the assault on Fort Stedman, on March 25, 1865. He was hit by a shell fragment that fractured both the right leg below the knee and the left kneecap. Both limbs were amputated above the knees on the same day. He recovered quickly and was discharged from Lincoln Hospital in Washington on Aug. 2, 1865. In 1866, while being treated at St. Luke's Hospital in New York City, he was outfitted with artificial limbs.
 
This particular photograph is from Surgeon/Photographer Reed Brockway Bontecou’s personal collection of wounded soldiers.
 
Army Medical Museum - Photograph Series No. 132 - Amputation of Both Thighs for Gunshot Injury
Format: Albumen Print
Size: 6.25 x 8.5 photograph mounted on board 9.5 x 11.5
Condition: Excellent