[CIVIL WAR]. Early war sixth plate tintype featuring a 5th Connecticut Infantry private holding his Springfield Rifle. 

Sixth plate seated portrait of a 5th Connecticut private with gear. (Several splotches to plate, some scratching throughout; unsealed.) Housed in a geometric Union case [Berg 3-104] (light nicking to edges and corners, some discoloration and wear to velvet pad). 

The infantryman looks directly into the camera, holding his M1855 or M1861 Springfield Rifle in one hand. His cap bears a small brass infantry horn with numeral "5" in the center, and his belt features an M1839 "baby size" plate worn upside down. The private also wears a cartridge box over his shoulder utilizing the woven shoulder strap issued to Connecticut troops, and a knapsack on his back. 

The 5th Connecticut Infantry Regiment was originally the pet project of Colonel Samuel Colt, to be named the "1st Connecticut Revolving Rifles," and was to be strictly recruited to Colt's own standards - armed, of course, with his namesake Revolving Rifle. All came to naught, however, and the regiment was mustered in as the 5th Connecticut. 


The Civil War and American Militaria Collection of Bruce B. Hermann