Bull Run. Blackburn's Ford 1861 - 1865

Timothy O’Sullivan made this photograph of Blackburn’s Ford at Bull Run, in Virginia, using a wet collodion process. The image offers insight into the documentary practices that emerged during the American Civil War. O'Sullivan worked for Alexander Gardner, whose studio produced documentary images of the war. Unlike staged or allegorical war pictures, photographs like this one presented what was claimed to be an unvarnished view of the conflict's aftermath. The image's stark realism was a deliberate strategy, aiming to bypass idealized or romantic depictions of war in favor of showing the landscape as it was. The absence of human figures is striking. The focus is on the landscape itself, subtly suggesting a sense of loss and desolation. To truly understand the image’s power, we need to consult period documents, soldiers' accounts, and other historical records. These resources help us understand photography's role in shaping public memory and informing opinions about the war.