William A. Frassanito

During the 1960s and 70s, William A. Frassanito undertook to find the exact spots at Gettysburg where the historic photographs were taken, a pioneering empiric task among the mostly text-bound historians (in stark contrast to the object-oriented archaeologists). Don't believe a photograph's caption, go and seek to identify it in situ.

At Gettysburg, this is both easy and a challenge. It is easy because most of the battlefield has been preserved as a national park. It is a challenge because today, dense vegetation has taken over much of the open space in 1863. During my visit in 2007, the battlefield appeared peaceful and park-like, hardly the working farm land it used to be. The photographs offer good indications how much the vegetation needs to be trimmed. A lot of brushwork needs to be done.

Among Frassanito's findings, I like best his discovery how some of the remaining bodies were moved to more photogenic locations (bodies which had been rotting for four days!) and that some iconic pictures of dead Union soldiers attributed to the first day's fighting were actually taken near the Rose Woods (exact location still unclear - due to new woods). The early photographers also missed the importance of Cemetary Ridge. An understandable gaffe, as the stonewalls of the history books are in reality barely knee-high. In order to get a good picture of the clump of trees, the photographers would have needed to move their equipment into the fields, a type of movement not supported even by today's road network.

A classic must-have title.… (mer)

Frassanito has an analytical mind that defies imagination. (He worked for army intelligenece in the 1960s). His ability to look at old photographs and to extract important historical facts and confirm them with written records is brillant. His goal here is to define the town of Gettysburg and the battlefield as it was in July of 1863. He is not looking for myth, he is looking for facts. These photographs do not lie (unless of course digitally manipulated) as the participants often did. It is a great approch to a major historical battle that answers many questions and raises more. Highly recommended.… (mer)