Tintypes and the Civil War
These four unidentified young military cadets pose for the photographer apparently reading letters from home. This photograph is a tintype, also known as a ferrotype (proper name since there is no tin) or melainotype. Tintypes, patented by Hamilton Smith in 1856, are thin negatives that when supported by a dark lacquered thin iron sheet appear as positive images.

Tintypes were inexpensive, easily handled, and could be sold for a penny or less making photography more universally available. Their popularity grew during the Civil War because every soldier wanted to send home a picture of himself with his rifle and sword. Tintypes, unlike daguerreotypes and ambrotypes which both involve the use of glass, could be easily mailed without the worry of shattering.

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