Behind Union Lines

The above human beings or contrabands served as nurses, cooks, laundresses, and laborers with the 13th Massachusetts Infantry circa 1863-1865. As Union Armies moved into the South, thousands of slaves fled to their camps. Although some Union officers sent them back to their masters, others allowed them to remain with their troops, using them as a work force and dubbing them "Contrabands of War."

Sources: Massachusetts Commandery Military Order of the Loyal Legion and the U.S. Military History Institute.