Civil War carte-de-visite photograph issued by Brady’s Album Gallery, numbered No. 300, titled “Fortifications on the Heights of Centreville.” The image shows a group of Union soldiers posed along an earthen defensive work reinforced with timber and brush. Several soldiers stand on the parapet holding rifles while others sit or rest nearby, giving a clear view of the constructed defensive line. The surrounding landscape reveals open fields and additional military encampments in the distance.

The photograph documents fortifications constructed around Centreville, Virginia, an important strategic position during the early years of the Civil War. Defensive earthworks such as these were built to protect key approaches to Washington, D.C., and to secure ground contested during campaigns in northern Virginia. Images of soldiers posed directly on the works provide valuable visual evidence of how these field fortifications were constructed and occupied.

The reverse carries the printed label “Brady’s Album Gallery No. 300 – Fortifications on the Heights of Centreville” along with the copyright credit to Barnard & Gibson, 1862. Photographs from this series were taken directly from nature and later issued through Brady’s gallery, forming part of one of the most important early photographic records of the American Civil War.