Gettysburg Battle Photos and How to Research and Document Them

Gettysburg Battle Photos

Those Gettysburg battle photos taken by photographers on the scene after the actual battle are so old that they are now public domain. That means that the copyright has expired and the pictures may be freely distributed. They are a primary source for historical information since they are first-hand accounts from the Civil War era.

Pickett's Charge from Little Round Top

If you modify a photo with cropping or editing (or just want to advertise your website!) you can add to it or change it so that it becomes your own creation.

Confederate Dead Gathered for Burial Near Rose Woods

If you would like to research copies of these photos for yourself without my labels, you can find them in the National Archives and Library of Congress online collections.

How to Use the National Archives
Go to the National Archives website to find Gettysburg battle photos. Click on the "Civil War Era" button. A new pop-up window will open. Next do a refine search with the term "Gettysburg" and check the box so that only results with a digital format are displayed. This search delivers many images and documents.

How to Use the Library of Congress
Go to the Library of Congress' American Memory online collection. Type in the search term "Gettysburg" and click the "Search" button. You can refine your results by listing more search terms.

Document Your Sources on Your Works Cited Page
If you are using these photos for a report, you will need to list the sources on your Works Cited page. This is the basic format suggested by the National Archives:

Record Item Title; File Unit; Series; Records of Subgroup; Record Group Number; National Archives Building, Washington, DC. [Online version on month date, year, available through the online catalog at http://www.archives.gov/research/arc/].

I suggest that you try the National Archives first when doing research, because their search database is much easier to use.