Juneteenth
is the oldest known celebration of the ending of
slavery. It is also known as the African American
Independence Day. Dating back to 1865, it was on
June 19th that the Union soldiers, led
by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston,
Texas with news that the war had ended and that
the enslaved were now free. This was two and a half
years after President Lincoln's Emancipation
Proclamation - which had become official January
1, 1863.
Juneteenth
is the oldest known celebration of the ending of
slavery. It is also known as the African American
Independence Day. Dating back to 1865, it was on
June 19th that the Union soldiers, led
by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston,
Texas with news that the war had ended and that
the enslaved were now free. This was two and a half
years after President Lincoln's Emancipation
Proclamation - which had become official January
1, 1863. 
