Anson and Granville County Libraries Honor “Freedom, Sacrifice, Memory” With Civil War Photography Exhibits Dec. 1-29

RALEIGH – Since the beginning of the Civil War (1861-1865) 150 years have passed, but its widespread impact and defining characteristics remain vivid. These can especially be seen in North Carolina as illustrated by the“Freedom, Sacrifice, Memory: Civil War Sesquicentennial Photography Exhibit” (www.nccivilwar150.com). The exhibit will be hosted by the Hampton B. Allen Library in Wadesboro and the Granville County Library in Oxford from Dec. 1-29, honoring North Carolinians in the Civil War with a variety of images.

 

“The Civil War occurred when photography was just becoming popular and became the first conflict to be widely recorded in this manner,” explains N.C. State Historic Sites Division Director Keith Hardison. “Battlefield images fascinated the public and acquainted them, in a dramatic way, with the horrors of war. The ‘Freedom, Sacrifice, Memory’exhibit presents images that compare and contrast the conditions of war, then and now.”

 

The exhibit will travel the state from April 2011 through May 2013, visiting 50 libraries and four museums with its showcase of 24 images. The N.C. Department of Cultural Resources (www.ncdcr.gov) commemorates the 150^th anniversary of the Civil War with images gathered from the State Archives (www.archives.ncdcr.gov), the N.C. Museum of History (www.ncmuseumofhistory.org) and State Historic Sites (www.nchistoricsites.org). A notebook will accompany the exhibit with further information and seeking viewer comments.

 

One of the images, “Opposing Lines – Battle of Bentonville,” shows Confederate forces advancing on Union troops in Johnston County. The original battle occurred March 19-21, 1865, and was the largest engagement to take place in North Carolina. It was the last Confederate offensive action of the war, but the greatly outnumbered Confederates lost the three-day battle.

 

For exhibit information call the Anson library at (704) 694-5177 or the Granville library at (919) 693-1121. Contact the Department of Cultural Resources at (919) 807-7389 for tour information.