Photograph Said to Be Taken During a Slave Auction in the Cheapside Area of Lexington, Kentucky (1862)

Photograph said to be taken during a slave auction in the Cheapside area of Lexington, Kentucky, c. 1861-1862. The man standing on a platform in the center waving his arms looks as though he is an auctioneer. The bovine in the left background might suggest that the photo actually depicts a livestock auction, although Cheapside was the location of a slave market in the period. Originally published in the book Slavery Times in Kentucky by John Winston Coleman.

Source: New York Public Library.
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Portrait of a Group of African American and White Men Posing Along a Street Titled “Roustabouts on the Levee” in St. Louis, Missouri, c. (1880's/1890's)

Portrait of a group of African American and white men posing along a street titled “Roustabouts on the Levee” in St. Louis, Missouri, c. 1883-1893.

Source: Rijksmuseum.

Carte De Visite Portrait of Harriet Tubman by Photographer Benjamin F. Powelson of Auburn, New York (1860's)

Carte de visite portrait of Harriet Tubman by photographer Benjamin F. Powelson of Auburn, New York, c. 1868-1869. Believed to be the earliest known photograph of her.

Source: Library of Congress.
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Animated Stereoview of an African American Man at the Reins of a Horse-Drawn Cart Carrying Cotton in Gainesville, Florida (1800's)

Animated stereoview of an African American man at the reins of a horse-drawn cart carrying cotton in Gainesville, Florida, c. 1800's.

Source: New York Public Library.

Portrait of an Unidentified Mounted Union Officer Posing With an African American Camp Servant in a Camp During the American Civil War (1860′s)

Portrait of an unidentified mounted Union officer posing with an African American camp servant in a camp during the American Civil War, c. 1860′s.

Source: Library of Congress.

Daguerreotype Portrait of an Unidentified Young Man by African American Photographer Francis Grice (1850′s)

Daguerreotype portrait of an unidentified young man by African American photographer Francis Grice, c. 1850′s.

Source: Library of Congress.

Portrait of a Group of African American Men Posing in Front of a Store Possibly in Kentucky (1800′s)

Portrait of a group of African American men posing in front of a store possibly in Kentucky, c. 1800′s.

Source: University of Kentucky.

Carte De Visite Portrait of an African American Boy Posing With a Dog (1860′s)

Carte de visite portrait of an African American boy posing with a dog, c. 1860′s.

Source: Library of Congress.

Animated Stereoscopic Portrait of an African American Woman, Possibly a Slave, Posing on a Sidewalk of a Street Probably in Lexington, Kentucky (1850's/1860's)

Animated stereoscopic portrait of a black woman, possibly a slave, posing on the sidewalk of a street probably in Lexington, Kentucky, c. 1850's/1860's.

Source.

Portrait of a Group of Freed Slaves on Their Way to Work in a Cotton Field on Marion Chaplin Place Plantation on St. Helena Island in South Carolina (1860's)

Portrait of a group of freed slaves on their way to work in a cotton field on Marion Chaplin Place Plantation on St. Helena Island in South Carolina, c. 1863-1866. By Hubbard and Mix. Animated stereoview.

Source.

Animated Stereoview of African American Workers Picking Cotton on a Farm Somewhere in North Carolina (1800's)

Animated stereoview of African American workers picking cotton on a farm somewhere in North Carolina, c. 1800's.

Source.

Daguerreotype Portrait of American Abolitionist Charles Lenox Remond (1850's)

Daguerreotype portrait of American abolitionist Charles Lenox Remond, c. 1850′s. By Samuel Broadbent.

Source.

Comedic Stereoview Titled “The White Slave" (1862)

Comedic stereoview titled “The White Slave,” c. 1862. Possibly British in origin.

Source.
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View of an African American Slave Boy Posing Next to a Pillar and a Sleeping Dog on the Grounds of Accabee Plantation Near Charleston, South Carolina (1860)

View of an African American slave boy posing next to a pillar and a sleeping dog on the grounds of Accabee Plantation near Charleston, South Carolina, c. 1860. By Osborn and Durbec.

Source.
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A Large Group of African American Slaves Posing Outside of Their Quarters on a Plantation Near Charleston, South Carolina (1860)

A large group of African American slaves posing outside of their quarters on a plantation near Charleston, South Carolina, c. 1860. A rare scene from perhaps the only series of photographs to document slavery in the United States. By Osborn and Durbec. Animated stereoview.

Source.

Hand-Colored Photograph Said to be Taken During the Last Public Slave Auction on Cheapside Street in Lexington, Kentucky (1860's)

Hand-colored photograph said to be taken during the last public slave auction on Cheapside Street in Lexington, Kentucky, c. 1860's. The auction looks as though it is possibly in progress with the figures who are standing over the crowd possibly being the slaves for sale and the crowd in front of them (nearer to the photographer) being the interested buyers. The slave auctions took place on the grounds of the Fayette County Courthouse which is visible at left.

Source.
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Two Photographs Taken Before and During the Burning Death of an African American Man Named Robert Henson Hilliard by a Lynch Mob in Tyler, Texas (1897)

"In the hands of the mob." Source.

"First fire withdrawn." Source.

Two photographs taken before and during the burning death of an African American man named Robert Henson Hilliard by a lynch mob in Tyler, Texas, 1897. Hilliard had been accused of of raping and murdering a white woman. Both photographs taken by C.A. Davis.

The following is a description of the event published in Thirty Years of Lynching in the United States, 1889-1918:

"Robert Henson Hilliard, a Negro, for a murder to which he confessed and for alleged rape, was burned to death by a mob in Tyler, Texas, Hilliard confessed the murder but stated that he killed his victim because he had unwittingly frightened her and feared that he would be killed.

A report of the crime and its punishment was written by an eye-witness and printed by a local publishing house. It ended as follows:

'Note: Hilliard's power of endurance was the most wonderful thing on record. His lower limbs burned off before he became unconscious and his body looked to be burned to a hollow. Was it decreed by an avenging God as well as an avenging people that his sufferings should be prolonged beyond the ordinary endurance of mortals?'

'We have sixteen large views under powerful magnifying lenses now on exhibition. These views are true to life and show the Negro's attack, the scuffle, the murder, the body as found, etc. With eight views of the trial and burning. For place of exhibit see street bills. Don't fail to see this. Breckinridge-Scruggs Co.'

No indictments were found against any of the mob's members."

American Soldiers Marching Along a Road Northwest of Verdun, France (1918)

American soldiers marching along a road northwest of Verdun, France, November 5, 1918. By the U.S. Army Signal Corps.

Source.

Tintype Portrait of an Unidentified African American Freemason Wearing a Masonic Apron (1872)

Tintype portrait of an unidentified African American Freemason wearing a Masonic apron, c. 1872.

Source.

An American Soldier Firing a Bazooka at an Axis Target 300 Yards Away Near Lucca, Italy (1944)

An American soldier firing a bazooka at an Axis target 300 away distant near Lucca, Italy, September 7, 1944. Original caption: "This Negro combat patrol advanced three miles north of Lucca (furthermost point occupied by American troops) to contact an enemy machine gun nest. Here a bazooka-man cuts loose at the target some 300 yards distant."

Source.