Civil War POW Camp

Civil War POW Camp. . , You are looking at the nationally significant site of the notorious Belle Isle prisoner-of-war camp where during the Civil War thousands of captured U.S. soldiers were confined., After the war began in 1861, military prisoners jammed Richmond’s jails and warehouses, until North and South signed a formal agreement on July 22, 1862, for prisoner exchanges. That month, Confederate authorities constructed a camp here on Belle Isle, and by the end of July 5,000 enlisted men were packed into it. At first, despite the crowding, the weather was tolerable and the guards let the men bathe in the river. By September 23, before it turned cold, most prisoners had been exchanged, and the camp was closed., In January 1863, however, prisoner exchanges stopped, and once again captured Federal soldiers were confined here. A “tent city” and wooden support buildings were soon constructed, thousands of prisoners filled the camp, supplies dwindled, and conditions deteriorated. Life here became intolerable the next winter, and men allegedly froze for lack of tents and blankets. In February 1864, Confederate authorities began dispersing the prisoners to other camps, and on March 24 the Belle Isle camp closed., On June 7, 1864, the prison reopened to hold Union soldiers captured during the Federal campaign toward Richmond. Because the city was threatened, however, most were soon transported south. The camp was virtually empty when Richmond fell on April 3, 1865., (captions) , Taken from the north bank of the James River, this photograph shows the prison camp area and some of the prison buildings on the left or eastern end of Belle Isle. Up the hill to the right, the road led to the gun emplacements overlooking the camp, as well as to an artillery battery on the island’s western end. The photograph was probably taken in April 1865. Courtesy Library of Congress and Michael Gorman, Richmond photographer Charles R. Rees recorded this image in the summer of 1863, before any wooden structures had been built on the end of Belle Isle near the distant tents. To the left of the man in the gray suit and dark hat can be seen the wheel of a cannon limber and a sponge for cleaning the barrel. Courtesy Michael Gorman