Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. On June 19, 1865, Major General Gordon Granger announced in Galveston, Texas, the end of slavery in accordance with President Abraham Lincoln's 1863 Emancipation Proclamation.
In 1980, Juneteenth became a Texas state holiday. In the decades since, every state but South Dakota came to officially commemorate Juneteenth, but only a handful of states observe it as a paid holiday.
On June 15, 2021, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed a bill making Juneteenth a federal holiday.
See also our Bill of Rights Collection and our International Day of Democracy Collection.
Lesson
Beyond Barbados Part 5- A Cultural Hearth video segment focuses on the rebellions that took place in Barbados and the false “Emancipation” that was presented to enslaved Africans after the rebellions...
Lesson
Students will determine major educational, social and political issues or problems facing African Americans following Reconstruction. Students will analyze the successes and failures of such...
Audio
This is an excerpt from the University of South Carolina public series, Conversations on the Civil War - 1863. Dr. Walter Edgar speaks to Dr. Thavolia Gylmph, Duke University, about the impact the...
Audio
This is an excerpt from the University of South Carolina public series, Conversations on the Civil War - 1863. Dr. Walter Edgar speaks to Dr. Thavolia Gylmph, Duke University, about President Lincoln...
Lesson
This lesson is one component of a unit on Reconstruction, which would be preceded by a separate unit on the Civil War. Preceding lessons in this unit should address the political, economic, and social...
Photo
The Emancipation Proclamation has often been misunderstood, even by those who admire it. Abraham Lincoln disliked the system of slavery, but he made it clear from the beginning that the war effort was...
Video
Juneteenth, also known as Juneteenth Independence Day, Freedom Day, or Emancipation Day, is the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the United States. During Rock Hill's...