Snapshots of the Past

[Sgt. John S. or W.(?) Lawson, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing slightly left] – Antique Photo Print

[Sgt. John S. or W.(?) Lawson, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing slightly left], [ca. 1900] — historic photograph
[Sgt. John S. or W.(?) Lawson, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing slightly left], [ca. 1900]. Historic photograph from the Historic Print Archive collection.

(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

Step back in time with [Sgt. John S. or W.(?) Lawson, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing slightly left], a historic photograph rich in period detail. The original is held by the Library of Congress, so what you hang is a true record of its time.

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[Sgt. John S. or W.(?) Lawson, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing slightly left]

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This portrait shows Sgt. John Lawson, whose first initial and middle initial are uncertain in the catalog record, as a head-and-shoulders study turned slightly to the left. It belongs to a group of Medal of Honor recipients, all African American soldiers, photographed for a collection assembled by Daniel Murray, an assistant at the Library of Congress. Murray gathered portraits and records to document Black achievement, and the material was shown at the 1900 Exposition Universelle in Paris. Pictures like this one, made around 1900, were meant to counter prevailing racist assumptions about Black men's service and courage.

Created / published[ca. 1900]
Medium1 photographic print.
GenrePortrait photographs 1890-1910.Photographic prints 1890-1910.
NotesDaniel Murray Collection (Library of Congress). Surrogate available as microfilm in P&P Reading Room.
SubjectsAfrican Americans--Military service.
SourceLibrary of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
Original scan3,279 × 4,096 px · prints to 11 × 14 in at 300 dpi
ReferenceAMZ-SOTP-HPA-194731

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