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Antique 1916–1917 Mexican Border Military Photograph Album – Eagle Pass, Texas – Original Photos, Hand Drawings & 1917 Letter
Rare original World War I-era military photograph album documenting U.S. Army life along the Mexican border during the 1916–1917 border mobilization.
The album is personalized on the cover to Miss Amy A. Brown, 1916–1917, The Mexican Border, and includes an inscription reading “Photos & Drawings Eagle Pass Tex. By J. S. Davant.”
Features original period photographs mounted on black album pages with elaborate hand-drawn illustrations, decorative borders, and handwritten captions.
Photographed subjects include:
* U.S. soldiers stationed along the Mexican border
* Military camps, tents, and encampments
* Soldiers guarding an international bridge
* Muster formations and military pay lines
* Military kitchen corps and outposts
* Searching for munitions
* Eagle Pass, Texas, and border-area scenes
* Early military football, captioned “Football on the Border”
Additional historical provenance:
Accompanied by an original handwritten personal letter dated June 13, 1917, from R.O.T. Camp in Chattanooga, Tennessee, addressed to Miss Amy Brown in Memphis, Tennessee. Includes the original postmarked envelope.
The letter references wartime uncertainty and the author’s personal feelings toward Miss Brown, offering additional insight into American life during the World War I period.
Condition:
Over 100 years old. Significant wear, deterioration, and edge losses to the album’s leather cover. Interior pages and photographs show age-related fading, discoloration, and wear. Some pages may be loose or fragile. Please carefully review all photographs for condition and contents.
An unusual surviving collection of early 20th-century American military photography, combining original photographs, hand-drawn artwork, personal correspondence, and Mexican Border Service history.
Sold as an original historical collection, exactly as pictured.
