Description
Rare and sought after carte view of Brigadier General Abram Duryee. At age 18, Duryée enlisted in the 142nd Regiment of the New York State Volunteers following in the footsteps of his paternal grandfather who fought in the Revolutionary War and his father and two uncles who served during the War of 1812. He rose through the ranks and in 1840 transferred to the 7th Regiment where he held Captain, Major, Lieutenant-Colonel, and Colonel positions. Duryée aided in subduing multiple riots including the Astor Place Riots in 1849 where he was wounded twice, and over 20 were killed, and the Dead Rabbit Riots in 1857. He would retire from the service in 1859, however the onset of the Civil War would put an end to his brief retirement. In the spring of 1861, he began recruiting men to fight for the Union gathering nearly 1000 men within 16 days. They were mustered into service as the 5th New York Infantry Regiment, more famously known as the “Duryee’s Zouaves”. Recognized as an extremely capable instructor and drillmaster, Duryee trained his men at Fort Schuyler for a few weeks before traveling to Fort Monroe in Virginia where they would take part in the Battle of Big Bethel performing gallantly. In September 1861, Duryée was appointed Brigadier General of Volunteers. The following April, he took command of a brigade and led them at the battles of Cedar Mountain, Second Manassas, South Mountain and Antietam sustaining a total of five wounds. Duryée then replaced James Rickett’s as division commander during the Battle of Antietam when Ricketts was wounded. Enduring his own wounds at Antietam, Duryée was placed on a 30-day leave. He returned to find that headquarters placed a less tenured brigadier general in charge of Ricketts’ division. With his pride hurt, Duryée submitted his resignation on January 5, 1863. He did not participate in the remainder of the war. Despite his resignation, Duryée was elevated to the rank of Brevet Major in July 1866 for his service. This is an exceptional full body pose of the famous general. A period ink id on the reverse reads, “Brig Genl Abram Duryea”. Hard to find portrait!
