The Collectors and the Collection

In 2010, local businessman Tom Liljenquist and sons Jason, Brandon, and Christian began donating more than 700 ambrotypes and tintypes of Union and Confederate Civil War soldiers to the Library of Congress.
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The Photographic Processes

The invention of wet collodion photography processes in the 1850s led to the development of two new kinds of photographs—ambrotypes and tintypes.
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Photographers and Their Studios

Photographic portraiture flourished during the Civil War. Ambrotype and tintype photographs were not only affordable, but a finished product could be produced in a matter of minutes.
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Revealing Details

Unidentified insignia on hats, buttons, coats, and belt buckles may provide information about the various regiment in which the soldiers served.
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