Today's soldiers enjoy sophisticated medical care, from Medevac helicopters that function like flying hospitals to advanced surgical techniques and bionic limbs. Things were different for Civil War solders. There were no antibiotics, pain control was poor, and surgeons focused not on rebuilding or replacing injured limbs but on sawing them off. Want to take a peek back in time 150 years and see what that world was like? Keep clicking to see 37 images from the National Museum of Civil War Medicine and the National Library of Medicine...
At left is a drawing of Private George W. Lemon, who was shot in the leg at the Battle of the Wilderness on May 5, 1864. Because he was captured by Confederate soldiers, he did not receive treatment for his injuries until over a week later, and then suffered repeated infections for over a year. Finally, his leg was amputated and he received an artificial leg.