Nancy Cowan
GIS: Environmental Applications Student - Department of Environmental Studies
Siena College
515 Loudon Road
Loudonville, New York 12211
Phone: 516-524-7144
Location and Conditions of “Contraband Camps” during and after the U.S. Civil War
Introduction
During the U.S. Civil War thousands of freed-slaves fled to the Union Army Camps. These camps eventually became known as “Contraband Camps.” The establishment of these camps directly led Former President Abraham Lincoln to issue the Emancipation Proclamation. Eventually these camps turned into small villages which were supported by the Union Army and Northern Abolitionists. However, many historians do not know exactly where these camps are located or what the quality of life was like for the freed-slaves in these camps. Since this is the case, a GIS model will be used to determine the approximate location of these camps and to draw conclusions based on the location of each camp.
Objectives
The goals of the GIS model will include
→ To map an approximate or exact location of each camp
→ To map the main battle sites of the U.S. Civil War
→ To determine if there is a correlation between Union Army victory battle sites and the number of Contraband Camps in local to the battle site
→To determine the number of schools and orphanages, whether there was disease outbreak in each Contraband Camp
→To draw other conclusions on the location and quality of life based on the sites of the Contraband Camps
Methodology
The GIS analysis will use a map of the Northern and Southern Regions of the United States. If it can be obtained, a map of these regions during the U.S. Civil War Era will be used. The location of each Contraband Camp and each U.S. Civil War battle site will be indentified. Each battle site will be color coded to determine whether it was a Union or Confederate victory. The distance between each Contraband Camp and closest battle site will be determined using ArcGIS software.
After mapping the location of each Contraband Camp and each U.S. Civil War battle site, the number of schools, orphanages, and disease outbreak rate will be determined by simply clicking on the located Contraband Camp. The disease outbreak rate will be determined on a 1-10 scale basis where 1 is very low or no outbreak at all and 10 meaning high amount of outbreak.
Not all regions or Confederate States during the U.S. Civil War abided by the Emancipation Proclamation. The states and regions that did not follow the Emancipation Proclamation will be indentified on the map using ArcGIS. Conclusions can be made to determine if there is correlation between these states or regions and the number of Contraband Camps as well.
Data Sources
The approximate locations of the Contraband Camps were provided by Dr. Amy Taylor. A documented from the National Archives & Records Administration is being used to determine the states and regions that were “exempt” from the Emancipation Proclamation. More data will be provided in the future to determine the number of schools, orphanages, and disease outbreak rate.
A base map of the Northern and Southern regions during the U.S. Civil War era may be a challenge to this project. Dr. Taylor suggested researching the National Archives & Records Administration because they have several maps of the U.S. during the Civil War Era. However the ability to upload these maps on ArcGIS may be a problem. Permission may also be needed to use these maps from the Library of Congress Online or Atlas books from the Siena College Library. If these challenges are a barrier, a current map of the U.S. can be used since political boundaries in these regions haven’t changed (with the exception of West Virginia).
Work Plan
March 2010
•Determine whether a U.S. Civil War Era or Present Day based map of the Northern and Southern Regions will be used
•Compile and map the data on the locations of the Contraband Camps and U.S. Civil War Battles
April 2010
•Determine the distance between these Contraband Camps and U.S. Civil War battle sites
•Provide the data on ArcGIS to determine the number of schools and orphanages
•Provide data on the disease outbreak rate
Budget
There is no traveling as of now or required payments for this GIS project.
