When Confederates entered Harpers Ferry, they found this “contraband camp” on Washington Street, one of several established by escaped slaves seeking protection within United States lines. (Library of Congress)
Contraband tent camp occupied by escaped slaves in Harper’s Ferry West Virginia, 1862. At left, a tent has a brick fireplace. This was one of about a 1,000 contraband camps established in Union garrison towns during the Civil War. Photograph by John P. S