William Thomson and Joseph Janvier Woodward were two of several exceptionally versatile and highly productive young physicians who volunteered for service with the Union Army at the outbreak of the Civil War, and then were subsequently assigned to the Washington Area where they played significant roles and made major contributions towards the development of the Army Medical Museum. Both pioneered in photomicrography. While Thomson deserves priority, Woodward was the more prolific contributor whose work and publications helped draw attention to the Army Medical Museum as a center for excellence in pathology. After the War Thomson returned to Philadelphia where his interests in photography stimulated his pursuit of optics and eventually his becoming one of the first American physicians to specialize in ophthalmology. He became Professor of Ophthalmology at Jefferson Medical College.