Slaves in Black and White

In December of 1863, at the height of the Civil War, a group of eight former slaves from New Orleans made a tour of northern cities to have their photographs taken to bolster support for the war effort and to raise funds for schools for emancipated slaves. New Orleans had been occupied by the Union army since April 1862; many slaves escaped to this Union-held territory, and the Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863 gave them their formal freedom.

Accompanying the eight was Colonel George Hanks of the 18th lnfranty. Corps d'Afrique, one of the newly formed regiments composed of African American recruits. Major General Nathaniel Prentice Banks, the commander of the Department of the Gulf, the Union-occupied region around New Orleans, was a supporter of education for former slaves and gave his backing to this publicity campaign.

Photographs from this series were made into cartes de visite for sale to the public at 25 cents each, one dollar for the large group portrait. The photographers were Myron H. Kimball and Charles Paxson, both of New York City.