"The Contraband"

Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

In the first painting of the series,  we see a man who's clear eyes look directly at the viewer. He lifts his hat and he smiles. The expression is warm, proud and confident, as if he is happy. Indeed, he has good reason to be happy. With a pocket full of tobacco, the small bundle, and the stooping posture, I thought immediately that he was a former slave, now free. Behind and to the right, a sign says, "Volunteers Wanted," so I think that he has come to the office to enlist. He may have just done so and received the rifle and belt. My one problem understanding this painting was that I could not understand how the title of the  painting fit. I wondered if the title referred to the man, at all, as the titles of the other two in the series obviously did. Merriam-Webster online and an article by the National Park Service cleared my confusion quickly by providing me with a relevant definition and origin.

Courtesy of Merriam-Webster, Inc., 2012.

The reason the term "contraband" was applied to former slaves was that it was shortened from the military expression "contraband of war," to mean property confiscated from the enemy. From late 1861 onward, slaves crossing Union lines became Union property and then were considered free (National Park Service, n.d.).