Most of the photos on this site were extracted from reference images (high-resolution tiffs, 20 to 200 megabytes in size) from the Library of Congress research archive. (To query the database click here.) Many were digitized by LOC contractors using a Sinar studio back. They are adjusted by your webmaster for contrast and color in Photoshop before being downsized and turned into the jpegs you see here.

1865. Charleston, South Carolina, after bombardment by the Federal Navy. Broad Street, looking east with the ruins of the Cathedral of St. John and St. Finbar. Half of a glass-plate stereograph, photographer unknown. View full size.
These Charleston ruins were caused by a great fire in 1861, prior to bombardment by the Federals. Many photos of the fire's aftermath have been mistaken for civil war actions. Damage from the bombardment usually resulted in large holes in structures, but not complete loss.
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