A carte-de-visite of Harriet Tubman seated in an interior room. She is positioned slightly turned to the right and gazes off camera. Her right hand rests on the back of a wooden chair and her left hand rests in her lap. A body patterned carpet covers the floor and the wall or drop behind her is a blank light color. Tubman wears a black bodice that buttons at the center front and has dropped sleeves with heavy ruching and ruffled details on the sleeves. There is a panel of lighter fabric around the yoke, with the upper neck the same dark color as the body of the bodice. A white lace collar with short tails is crossed and pinned at the front of her neck. Her hair is parted at the center and gathered at the nape of her neck. Tubman's full skirt is made from a light and dark patterned gingham check. It drapes slightly on the floor and hides her feet completely. The text "Harriet Tubman" is handwritten in graphite across the bottom of her skirt. The print is mounted on card stock and a double-lined red border is printed around the front edges of the card framing the print.
The photograph is housed in the album 2017.30. The album page has a triple-lined, gold border framing the print. Handwritten in graphite in the lower left corner of the album page with this photograph is the text "Powelson photog. / Auburn Ny".
Matte collodion photograph of Harriet Tubman standing in an interior room setting. The full-length portrait shows Tubman facing the photographer in the middle of the frame with her hands resting on the back of an upholstered chair. Tubman wears a dark bodice with metal buttons at the center front and full-length fitted sleeves. A white ruffled lace collar is tied at her neck. Her ankle length skirt is full with gathers at the waist and a wide decorative fabric band around the skirt near the hem. Her shoes with rounded toes are visible below her skirt. Her hair is parted at the center and pulled back at the nape of her neck. A coat or other article of clothing is draped over the chair and a hat is placed on the chair seat. Behind and to Tubman's right is a table covered in a patterned cloth with a book placed on the table top. The floor is carpeted and a painted drop with details mimicking wainscoting and a fluted column is visible in the background. Handwritten on the reverse along the bottom in graphite is the text "Harriet Tubman".
The photograph was found tucked into the back of the album 2017.30, though it is too large to fit into the windowed pages of the album.