(1816-86) Born at Natchitoches, La., he graduated in the West Point class of 1838. His service in the U.S. Army was extensive. He saw action in the Seminole War 1838-39, duty in the Utah expedition against the Mormons, and was brevetted for gallantry in the Mexican War. He also was the inventor of the Sibley tent which saw much use in the early years of the Civil War by the armies of both sides. Commissioned brigadier general in the Confederate army on June 17, 1861, he was the commander of an expedition designed to secure New Mexico for the Confederacy. After the battles of Valverde and Glorietta Canon he was forced to retreat since he could not subsist his command off the country. Under incredible hardships he reached El Paso, Texas in May 1862, and subsequently retired to San Antonio. Thereafter he served in Louisiana and the Trans-Mississippi Department. After the Civil War, Sibley went abroad and was a general of artillery in the Egyptian Army. He spent the last years of his life in ill health and comparative poverty and died at Fredericksburg, Va. where he is buried.

Antique photograph, 2 5/8 x 3 1/2. Bust view in Confederate uniform. No imprint. Circa 1800's, post Civil War print.