African American contrabands digging a canal
African American contrabands digging a canal across a bend in the Mississippi river during the Siege of Vicksburg, 1862. About 1, 100-1, 200 African-Americans were gathered from neighboring plantations by armed parties for work on the canal. The canal dug across the base of De Soto Point to make a channel for Union gunboats and transports to bypass the Confederate batteries at Vicksburg, during the Civil War. From Harpers Weekly
Picture No
13123105
Media ID
45382776
Size
2439px x 3000px
(4.0MB)
Credit
Mary Evans / The Everett Collection
Source
Courtesy Everett Collection
