Abraham Lincoln and George B. McClellan photograph   Save
AV83 Abraham Lincoln Presidental Collection
Description: A black and white photograph of Abraham Lincoln and General George B. McClellan, the general-in-chief of the Union Armies during the Civil War, in McClellan’s tent. The photograph was taken by Alexander Gardner on October 3, 1862 in Antietam, Maryland, after the Battle of Antietam and the announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation. George McClellan was the commander of the Army of the Potomac during the Battle of Antietam. The Battle of Antietam, also called the Battle of Sharpsburg, took place on September 17, 1862, and was the first battle of the Civil War to occur in Union territory. Antietam is the site of the largest number of single-day casualties in American military history, with a total of more than 22,000. Due to massive casualties and lack of a clear victor, the battle is considered a tactical draw. However, as the Confederate army was the first to withdraw from the battlefield, the Union army is sometimes credited with a victory. Abraham Lincoln, 16th president of the United States, had issued a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862, five days after Antietam, announcing that he would free the slaves of the Confederacy on January 1, 1863. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV83_B01F12_001
Subjects: Generals--United States; McClellan, George Brinton, 1826-1885; Photography--History; Presidents--United States; Battlefields; Civil War 1861-1865; Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865
Places: Antietam (Maryland)