Scarce Large-Format Studio Photographs of Buffalo Soldiers in Uniform and Civilian Dress, 1915

Buffalo Soldiers

Archive

[WWI] [African American] [Military] Three Black studio portrait photographs circa 1912 to 1915 documenting African American Regular Army service just prior to the entry years of World War I, when Black soldiers served in segregated units while federal military expansion and national debates over Black enlistment intensified. Identified through inscription and uniform as part of the Buffalo Soldier tradition, these images place African American military service within the longer post–Civil War structure of segregated federal regiments. The archive expands beyond individual portraiture to include a group composition that situates uniformed service within family and community life, establishing a direct visual record of how military identity functioned within Black social networks in the Jim Crow United States.

Three large-format studio photographs, slightly colorized and mounted on original display boards, produced circa 1912–1918, with a dated inscription “12/10/15” on one mount. The first image presents a man in civilian attire seated beside a woman possibly identified verso as “Mrs. Frank Joe,” likely portraying a domestic relationship and anchoring the archive in named individuals. The second rectangular photograph shows the same man in uniform alongside another Black soldier, both wearing double-breasted wool service coats with standing collars, collar discs, campaign-style hats of the “Montana peak” type standardized after 1912, and lace-up boots; one holds a cigar while the other stands with hands in his coat pockets. The oval photograph depicts four figures: two uniformed young men standing behind, with a seated young woman and a seated civilian man in suit and brimmed hat in the foreground. The composition aligns with common studio practices in which enlisted men posed with relatives or close community members prior to or during military service. Handwritten verso markings, including a legible “12-4-15,” likely function as either a date or studio reference number and support a mid-1910s timeframe consistent with the uniforms.
Produced during the transitional mobilization period before U.S. entry into World War I, these photographs align with a documented pattern of studio portraiture used by soldiers to construct and preserve family identity amid anticipated separation. Within African American communities, such portraits carry additional historical weight, as Black soldiers served in racially segregated units with limited advancement opportunities while asserting dignity, discipline, and visibility through uniformed representation. The inclusion of both individual and group imagery, particularly the four-person oval composition, connects military service directly to kinship structures. There is significant edge wear and chipping to mounting boards, with staining at corners. Old tape repairs visible, and surface wear consistent with display. The oval photograph shows more pronounced creasing, cracking, and edge losses, with adhesive residue and handling wear on the verso. Images remain clear with strong legibility of facial features and uniform detail. Overall good only condition. A three-image photographic archive that unites African American military service with family portraiture in the years immediately preceding U.S. participation in World War I, anchored by inscription and reinforced by uniform dating.

Item #21162

Price: $1,800.00