The first bronze sculpture for a contraband camp at the Corinth battlefield site has arrived in Corinth for fitting to a concrete base.

Seven sculptures are planned by artists Larry and Andrea Lugar. The first statue completed is of a woman leaning against a wooden fence.

Contraband camps were places where former slaves escaped to live behind Union lines before the end of the Civil War.

Historians say in Corinth, the camp grew to about 6,000 residents and was a thriving community that included teachers, farmers, laundry workers and others.

The bronze sculptures will depict daily life in the camp.