Details
[LEE, ROBERT E.] BRADY, Mathew, Photographer. Carte-de-visite bust portrait of Lee in civilian clothes, ca. 1865 [Inscribed "Uncle Bob. President of Washington College Jany. 1867" on verso], SIGNED ("R.E. LEE") IN INK AT LOWER RIGHT CORNER, AND AGAIN ON THE VERSO, 100 x 60 mm. (including mount), with M.B. Brady and Co. imprint dated 1865 below image and Brady backstamp on verso. Fine.
A distinguished-looking Lee in civilian dress including bow-tie, vest and jacket, his hair and beard neatly trimmed. When the former Confederate leader was pardoned in 1865, he turned his focus to the economic and cultural restoration of the South. Admired and respected even in the northern states, Lee received many requests for his signed photographs. His son later recalled that Lee found the attention to be an irritating distraction; Lee's wife apparently kept a supply of signed photographs on hand so that she could answer the numerous inquiries from admiring fans.
A distinguished-looking Lee in civilian dress including bow-tie, vest and jacket, his hair and beard neatly trimmed. When the former Confederate leader was pardoned in 1865, he turned his focus to the economic and cultural restoration of the South. Admired and respected even in the northern states, Lee received many requests for his signed photographs. His son later recalled that Lee found the attention to be an irritating distraction; Lee's wife apparently kept a supply of signed photographs on hand so that she could answer the numerous inquiries from admiring fans.