Up high
Writing high on walls offered another way for a soldier to make his name stand out, in addition to decorating it and making it large.
James Mooney's signature at Ben Lomond, for example, is directly beneth the ceiling of the first floor, which would have required a ladder or furniture to access.
Likewise, several of the names visible in Matthew Brady's photograph of the Falls Church are well above where the men would have been able to reach standing on the ground.
The group of names highest on the wall, up at the level of the second-story window are all from the same regiment, the 141st New York Volunteers. That one name, Sergeant C. W. Breese appears twice, at the bottom of the group and the top, suggests they may have been competing to see who could write their name highest on the wall.
The one other signature large enough to be visible in the photograph is also by a member of the 14st New York Volunteers, written vertically up the left hand side of the window on the bottom left: "Capt J E Culver, Co A 141st Regt, N.Y.V"
Many of the signatures visible in the photo are well above ground level. In addition to the group at the very top left, there are signatures above and around the window on the lower right and around the window on the lower left