Jonathan Letterman
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Object Details
- Artist
- Alexander Gardner, 17 Oct 1821 - 10 Dec 1882
- Sitter
- Jonathan Letterman, 11 Dec 1824 - 15 Mar 1872
- Unidentified Men
- Exhibition Label
- With this group portrait, Gardner turned his attention to the medical corps of the Army of the Potomac, spotlighting the importance of Dr. Jonathan Letterman, who was named its medical director, with the rank of major, in June 1862. Letterman is credited with revolutionizing battlefield medicine, and his work as both a physician and manager was essential in bringing care of the wounded up to standard after the early battles exposed the army’s shocking unpreparedness to care for its casualties. Letterman systematized treatment, adopting the triage system for categorizing the severity of wounds. He also made sure that the doctors and medical staff were as close to the battlefield as possible, and he created mobile field hospitals. Letterman’s reforms made a great difference, but the medical staff was always fighting a losing battle against mass casualties on the battlefield and the prevalence of disease in camp.
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
- November 1862
- Object number
- NPG.78.98
- Restrictions & Rights
- CC0
- Type
- Photograph
- Medium
- Albumen silver print
- Dimensions
- Image/Sheet: 17.1 × 23 cm (6 3/4 × 9 1/16")
- Mount: 30.1 × 38.7 cm (11 7/8 × 15 1/4")
- Mat: 40.6 × 55.9 cm (16 × 22")
- Place
- United States\Virginia\Fauquier\Warrenton
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Location
- Currently not on view
- National Portrait Gallery
- Topic
- Home Furnishings\Furniture\Seating\Chair
- Costume\Headgear\Military
- Nature & Environment\Plant\Tree
- Personal Attribute\Facial Hair\Mustache
- Architecture\Building\Tent
- Nature & Environment\Animal\Dog
- Personal Attribute\Facial Hair\Beard
- Nature & Environment\Plant\Grass
- Exterior\Forest
- Exterior\Military Camp
- Unidentified Men: Male
- Jonathan Letterman: Male
- Jonathan Letterman: Military and Intelligence\Army\Officer\Civil War
- Jonathan Letterman: Medicine and Health\Physician
- Jonathan Letterman: Military and Intelligence\Army\Army physician
- Portrait
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.78.98
- Metadata Usage (text)
- CC0
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm455693f81-37b5-4296-8aff-21e6cd6681a8
This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Open Access page.
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