Pressed Tobacco from Libby Prison – Richmond, Virginia

Description

Pressed Tobacco from Libby Prison – Richmond, Virginia

 

This remarkable block of pressed tobacco was recovered from the grounds of Libby Prison in Richmond, Virginia—one of the Confederacy’s most infamous prisons, known for holding Union officers under increasingly brutal conditions as the war progressed.

 

Before the war, the building served as a commercial tobacco warehouse, and remnants of stored tobacco occasionally turn up among the debris associated with the structure. This intact, compacted bar represents an authentic survival of that earlier industrial use, later overshadowed by the site’s grim wartime history.

 

The tobacco remains solid, heavily aged, and exhibits the mottled coloration, dryness, and surface degradation expected of a 19th-century leaf product stored under fluctuating temperatures and humidity. Its survival in this form is extremely uncommon, as organic materials from prison sites were rarely preserved. Measures approximately 10 1/2″ x 2 3/4″.

 

Artifacts tied to Libby Prison carry strong historical resonance, evoking the daily deprivation, ration scarcity, and severe confinement suffered by Union prisoners of war. This small but powerful relic bridges the building’s dual identity: a commercial warehouse before the war and a symbol of hardship and endurance during it.

 

A compelling display piece for any Civil War collection, especially those focused on POW history or Richmond-area wartime history.

 

Comes housed in 8 x 12 riker display case with red velvet and descriptive card.

 

 

Inventory Number: MIS 343