Chasing the “Panther of the Valley”

Late in the summer of 1864, James E. Taylor returned to northern Virginia. It wasn’t his first time in this particular stretch of the Piedmont. In 1862 he marched through as a soldier in the 10th New York Infantry, but now he was here in a different role. The young ex-soldier was a skilled sketch artist, and he was in Virginia to follow General Sheridan’s campaign in the Shenandoah Valley as a correspondent for Leslie’s Illustrated magazine.

Taylor would spend months travelling up and down the Valley and the surrounding area, producing numerous sketches and taking meticulous notes in his diary. In the decades after the war he used this diary as the basis for a massive volume entitled With Sheridan up the Shenandoah Valley in 1864: Leaves From a Special Artist’s Sketch Book and Diary. The manuscript contains an edited version and annotated version of the original diary, as well as more than 500 sketches drawn from his wartime work. It’s an amazing work of both history and art, and it provides a fascinating look at the Civil War through Taylor’s eyes.

One of the many subjects that drew Taylor’s attention was John Mosby. The artist spent a great deal of time in what is now the Heritage Area, and the exploits of the area’s most famous raider made great adventure stories for his readers. Taylor himself traversed “Mosby’s Confederacy” many time – often alone – to restock his art supplies at Harper’s Ferry, and the capture by Mosby’s men was an ever present threat. In his manuscript he gave Mosby a unique nickname. Today we tend to think of Mosby as the “Gray Ghost,” but to Taylor he was the “Panther of the Valley.”

Taylor’s first encounter with Mosby’s Rangers occurred early in his journey. The artist was spending time with Union horsemen of Cole’s Maryland Cavalry stationed at the Old Chapel near the village of Millwood. As the blue-coated troopers rode off in the direction of White Post, Taylor caught a glimpse of several of Mosby’s men in the distance. He wrote about the encounter in his own, very particular way:

Here for the first time Mosby’s men were in evidence, but we were not disturbed by their presence as they were scant in number and kept a respectful distance…Naturally we were much interested in our friends the enemy as were they were with us, and not only kept a sharp lookout, but our binoculars as well, on the alert “Vigilantes” ever ready for a swoop, numbers warranting…One of the rangers, on a powerful black in the run, standing out in relief against the bank, especially attracted. His face was the face of a Devil may care, not yet out of his teens who with eyes strained eagerly scanned us while fingering his Colt as if tempted despite the distance, to salute us with a leaden compliment. I drew him with my glass till I had gotten his features by heart from his remaining immovable like one posing before a camera.

This would not be Taylor’s last encounter with Mosby’s men, but it was certainly a lasting first impression.

To learn more about James Taylor and his sketchbook, join us on August 24th for the “Art of War” bus tour. We will visit several of the sites sketched by Taylor in 1864, to compare the historic landscape with that of today. Tickets are limited, so visit http://www.MosbyHeritageArea.org/events or call (540) 687-5578 to reserve your seat today!

Class Activity: In your own words, answer the following questions

1. How were artists used during the Civil War?
2. What did Taylor think of Mosby? Was he impressed? Scared? Justify your answer.