(CIVIL WAR NEW YORK) Portrait of militia officer Edward J R

Sale 2564 - Lot 184

Unsold

Estimate: $ 1,500 - $ 2,500

(CIVIL WAR--NEW YORK.) Portrait of militia officer Edward J. Riley, who would soon command the Mozart Regiment. Salt print with applied color, 9 x 7 1/4 oval; pinholes at corners, minimal wear; inscribed on verso in early 20th century hand "Colonel Edward J. Riley 1861, Edward's grandfather." [New York], circa late 1850s

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Edward Johns Riley (1831-1918) of New York City served in the 8th Regiment of the New York State Militia, known as the Washington Greys, from 1853 to 1859, resigning as the regiment's senior captain. He is here shown in his Washington Greys uniform, with the "8" badge on his hat. He volunteered at the outset of the war with the 40th New York Infantry, the Mozart Regiment, and was appointed a colonel before they left camp. Shortly before the Battle of Fair Oaks in May 1862, however, he was kicked in the head by his horse and soon resigned from service, spending the remainder of his life in Brooklyn. See his biography in Floyd's "History of the Fortieth (Mozart) Regiment, New York Volunteers," page 18.

Provenance: Estate of Michael J. McAfee.