CDV of Civil War Libby Prison with Seldon & Ennis Backmark

CDV of Civil War Libby Prison with Seldon & Ennis Backmark.
 
Libby Prison was a notorious Confederate prison during the American Civil War, located in Richmond, Virginia. Originally a tobacco warehouse owned by Captain Luther Libby, the building was repurposed in 1862 by the Confederate Army to hold captured Union officers. The prison quickly gained infamy for its harsh conditions, including severe overcrowding, inadequate food, poor sanitation, and a lack of medical care. At its peak, Libby housed over 1,000 prisoners in a space meant for only a few hundred, leading to widespread disease and suffering. Despite its grim reputation, Libby was also the site of a famous escape in February 1864, when more than 100 Union officers tunneled their way out, with over half successfully reaching Union lines. After the war, the prison became a symbol of the hardships endured by Union prisoners. In the 1880s, the building was dismantled and moved to Chicago, where it was briefly reassembled as a war museum before eventually being torn down. Libby Prison remains a powerful reminder of the brutal realities of Civil War incarceration.