Two important mounted photographs of Jefferson Shields taken at the Virginia Military Institute c. 1910. Shields was born into slavery in Virginia, the property of Margaret Glasgow Edmondson. About 15 years before the war, Mrs. Edmondson hired Shields out as a cook for the Lexington Hotel, a profession that brought him local renown. When War came to the Confederacy, Col. James Kerr Edmondson of the 27th Virginia Infantry took Shields along as his servant. Shields would later claim that his cooking skills were so well received that he began preparing meals for Confederate leaders such as Stonewall Jackson. In 1863, Edmondson was wounded at the Battle of Chancellorsville and lost his left arm. Shields escorted Edmondson home but soon returned to the Army of Northern Virginia, where he resumed his role as an officers? servant.

After the war, Shields returned to Lexington and, now free, became employed as a cook. He earned enough to build a small brick house in town where he lived with his wife, Mary. Not enough is known about his post-War life, but as the story goes in 1901 he attended a meeting of Confederate Veterans in Staunton and made a plea to receive a Stonewall Brigade badge, a special recognition bestowed on veterans who served under Stonewall Jackson. The aging Rebels gladly fulfilled his request, and Shields proudly wore his Stonewall badge in many photographs for the rest of his life. Organizations such as the United Daughters of the Confederacy embraced Shields and he in turn benefited socially and financially. He died in 1918, and is buried at Lexington?s Evergreen Cemetery under a Confederate military headstone with the rank of private. Shields remains an intriguing and much-discussed figure today, having left behind a complicated legacy.

These particular photos of Shields were taken when he was of an advanced age. His distinctive white beard frames a weathered, expressive face. He clutches a tall walking stick for balance. Nine Confederate medals, including his Stonewall Brigade honor, are pinned to his vest. An ink note on the mount reads simply, ?Taken at VMI?. (Shields for a time was employed as a private chef for a professor at that institution.) The condition of both photos are very strong, and the portrait is well-composed, with outstanding clarity and sharpness. Photographs of Shields are vital to the understanding of the post-War south and are rarely encountered at auction. We are unable to locate other examples identical to these.

The portrait of Shields measures 4 1/4 x 3 1/4. The photograph of Shields with VMI cadets is affixed to the reverse of the mount.





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