Seated studio portrait possibly featuring General James Chalmers wearing civilian clothing and his characteristic mustache and beard. (Minor surface imperfections, else good; unsealed.) Housed in a Union case (non-functioning closure, separation to upper hinge, discoloration to velvet pad, nicking and soiling to surfaces). 

A prominent figure in Mississippi, James R. Chalmers (1831-1898) served as a district attorney and as a member of the secession convention prior to the outbreak of Civil War, and was appointed Colonel of the 9th Mississippi Infantry Regiment in 1861. He was given brigade command in 1862, and was later transferred to cavalry command, taking charge of a division under general Forrest in 1864. After the war, Chalmers engaged in Reconstruction politics, representing Mississippi in Congress from 1877-1881.