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ca. 1885 CABINET CARD OF A MOUNTED SOLDIER AND
FRONTIER STABLE – VERY UNUSUAL STABLE SETTING AND
EXCELLENT CAVALRY RELATED SUBJECT:
This is a particularly
nice cabinet card image of an Indian Wars Cavalryman,
ca. 1885, mounted on his horse under arms with the open
door of the post stables behind him. The style and
obvious size of the stable building is very similar to
the surviving stable buildings at Fort Concho in San
Angelo, Texas.
This soldier
presents as a seasoned veteran and is dressed and
equipped for duty “under arms” on the garrison. The
forage cap, bearing the regimental insignia, the Model
1885 Sabre Belt with holstered pistol and sabre, and the
lack of saddle bags on the horse all indicate he was
probably coming on duty for a guard or parade assignment
rather than going into the field. Interestingly, the
soldier standing in the doorway of the stable is wearing
a Model 1885 Mills Woven Cartridge belt with a holstered
pistol – an accoutrement set normally associated with
field or campaign wear.
The horse is
mounted with what appears to be, and is most likely
given the other equipment fully visible, a Model 1885
McClellan Saddle and a Model 1885 Saddle Blanket – items
that do not often appear in these period images.
Measuring 6 ½”
by 4 ½”, this is a good sized image that provides a good
view of all the subject matter. The cabinet card has
seen some aging and exposure to handling, but the image
is still quite sharp. There is a crack in the card
immediately above the mounted soldier’s head that has
been repaired and is now stable. There are four light
spots above and to the left of the horse’s head, but
they do not interfere with the image content.
Otherwise, the image and the card are very stable, with
no additional damage.
There is an
ink stamped legend on the reverse along one edge.
Unfortunately, the full text is not decipherable due to
the stamp being applied right on the edge, but what is
legible reads, “US CAVALRY”. It is possible this was an
official US Army photograph taken by a post photographer
or one under contract to the army. There is also some
other notes hand written in pencil that appear to be
period to the image, but I have been unable to make them
out.
The relatively
minor wear to this image is more than offset by the
unique nature of the subject matter and all of the
detail included in the soldier’s and the horse’s
equipment. Mounted soldier images are fairly scarce and
have always been one of the premier subjects sought
after in Indian War photography. (0334) $675
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