1862 Mathew Brady Image

Wet plate, albumen carte de visite photograph, mounted to 2 1/2 x 4 card. View of Taylor's Tavern with a Union officer with saber standing in the foreground. A Union soldier standing at attention is visible at the center of the view. Imprint on the front mount: Entered According to Act of Congress, in the year 1862, by M.B. Brady, to the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Columbia. Back mark: Brady's Album Gallery, No. 296. Taylor's Tavern. Entered According to Act of Congress, in the year 1862, by M.B. Brady, to the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Columbia. Minor age toning and light wear. Very fine. Desirable 1862 war date photograph of this historic area of Virginia.

WBTS Trivia: The city of Falls Church is named for the 1734 Church of England. After exploration by Captain John Smith, England began sending colonists to what they called Virginia. During the American Revolution the area is most known for The Falls Church vestrymen George Washington and George Mason. A copy of the United States Declaration of Independence was read to citizens from the steps of The Falls Church during the summer of 1776. During the Civil War, Falls Church voted 44–26 in favor of secession from the Union. The Confederate Army occupied the then village of Falls Church as well as Munson's and Upton's Hills to the east, due to their views of Washington, D.C. In July 1861, Union forces under the command of General Irvin McDowell marched passed Taylor's Tavern, on their way to fight in the 1st battle of Bull Run. On September 28, 1861, Confederate troops withdrew from Falls Church and the nearby hills, retreating to the heights at Centreville. Union troops took Munson's and Upton's hills, yet the village was never entirely brought under Union rule. Mosby's Raiders made several armed incursions into the heart of Falls Church to kidnap and murder suspected Northern sympathizers in 1864 and 1865.