Maryland National Guard seeks help solving 150-year-old Civil War photo mystery
Maryland National Guard seeks help solving 150-year-old Civil War photo mystery
The Maryland National Guard and the Maryland Center for Military History want help identifying Civil War soldiers seen in a rare collection of photos.
OCEAN CITY, MD. - Officials with the Maryland National Guard and the Maryland Center for Military History want the public's help in solving a 150-year-old mystery.
The backstory:
The Maryland Center for Military History currently has a display containing individual tintype photographs of every enlisted member of Company B, Second Regiment, Maryland Eastern Shore volunteers. They also have a list of the soldiers' names. The problem, however, is that curators say they haven't been able to match most of the names to the faces.
Officials state the pictures were taken shortly after the soldiers enlisted in Chestertown in 1861. The display was donated to the Center in 1991, and researchers believe it’s the only known surviving collection of its kind documenting an entire Civil War military company.
To this point, only one of the soldiers has been identified: 1st Sgt. Alfred Benjamin, who holds the highest rank and was therefore given the most prominent spot on the board, according to officials.
Staff members hope someone will recognize a family name or have old photographs or genealogical records that could help solve the mystery.
What they're saying:
Maryland Center for Military History Curator Alexandra Reed said the idea for the project actually came from an interview officials conducted with an Iraq War veteran, when they realized they couldn't identify all the individuals seen in certain photos.
"We need to put names to the people who have served us in the past and have helped develop into who we are today, and it’s also to let people know that – especially soldiers today – that you’re going to be remembered," Reed said.
"Your service is important to us, and no matter what, we will always be there to record your history and to acknowledge everything that you’ve done for us today," she added.
What's next:
The photos will be on display at the Maryland Association of Counties Conference in Ocean City on Thursday and Friday.
The Source: Information from FOX 5 D.C. reporting.