New Jersey 24th Regiment at Camp Cumberland, Hall’s Hill
During the Civil War (1861-1865) tens of thousands of Federal troops passed through Arlington. Many captured their experiences by writing letters home. But a few were accomplished artists, and their sketches and drawings provide a more detailed account of their lives as soldiers. One of these soldier/artists was John G. Keyser who served with the New Jersey Twenty-Fourth Regiment. Keyser was born in Oberstenfeld, Germany on May 13, 1827. He immigrated to Philadelphia when he was 19 years old and later moved to Bridgeton, New Jersey. On September 2nd, 1862 Keyser enrolled in the army, joining the Twenty-Fourth Regiment, New Jersey Volunteers Company H.
Already established as an artist before the war, Keyser put his talent to use during his nine month enlistment. He served from September 2, 1862 – June 19, 1863. Company H travelled from New Jersey to Baltimore, Washington then to its final destination of Virginia, where they spent majority of their time. The 24th was involved in both the Battle of Fredericksburg in December 1862 and the Battle of Chancellorsville in May 1863.Keyser captured the travels, the camps, battles, and men, immortalizing them in his sketches.
Keyser’s sketches were acquired by the Cumberland County Historical Society in New Jersey following the artist’s death in 1902. The collection remained relatively unnoticed until they were digitized in 2017 by the Warren and Reba Lummis Genealogical & Historical Research Library. The collection has great value for Civil War researchers in Arlington, since several images capture Federal soldiers camping at Hall’s Hill and guarding Chain Bridge.
John G. Keyser’s Civil War Sketches Collection
Once Keyser was out of the service, he returned to Bridgeton, New Jersey. He continued working as a painter. He sold sketches he had done while in Europe of battle scenes of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, along with sketches of the different camps of the 24th Regiment, New Jersey Volunteers Company H from Beverly, NJ to Virginia. In 1891 Keyser applied for his passport to return to Germany. Although he planned on staying only a year before returning to the United States, Keyser fell ill in Germany and died there on February 11, 1902.
