- Date:
- November 10, 1865
- Original Format:
- Photographic Print
- Item#:
- MES15526
- Photographer:
- Alexander Gardner
Execution of Captain Henry Wirz
This photograph was taken at the moment the trap was sprung. Soldiers are shown leaning over from their positions to get a better look as the Capitol buildings looms in the background. He was the warden of the Andersonville prison camp and was sentenced to hang "for impairing the health and destroying the lives of prisoners." Wirz was the only Confederate officer executed as a war criminal.