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.

1864 or 1865. "Deep Bottom, Virginia. Federal gunboat Mendota on the James River. Put in service May 2, 1864." From photographs of the Federal Navy and seaborne expeditions against the Atlantic Coast of the Confederacy. Wet plate glass negative, photographer unknown. View full size.
Are these all your photos?
[They are our jpegs. More here. - Dave]
A photo of the crew and article here.
Looks like it's laundry day on the Mendota.
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