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"Photographs from the siege of Petersburg, Va. Redoubt near Dunn's house in outer line of Confederate fortifications captured June 14, 1864, by Gen. William F. Smith." Wet plate glass negative by Timothy O'Sullivan. View full size.
Honestly, was this trench dug by hand? It looks too perfect, as if scooped out by some machine. I'm certain the fine art of trench digging has suffered in the years since this photo, but I had no idea how much.
Whenever I am at a primitive camp "show and tell" for a day, I knock together a stick stool much like the overturned model in the foreground. The seat and legs can be made out of firewood with a camp axe. The holes for the legs require a chisel, auger or some other means of digging out several inches of wood. The camp kettle is another familiar fixture, and notice how the tent is held up by a bayonet gun stuck into the ground (the wind must have wobbled it during the exposure).
Something women do after they say they believe you.
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