Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the United States. As of May 2016, 45 of the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia recognize it as either a state or ceremonial holiday.
Here are 3 more things to know about 06.19.1865.
1) President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862, declaring that all slaves in states in rebellion against the Union would be forever free as of January 1, 1863.
2) The Emancipation Proclamation freed 3.1 million slaves in 11 Confederate states, but didn’t apply to border states like Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri.
3) Juneteenth (short for “June nineteenth”) commemorates the day Union General Gordon Granger and 1,800 troops arrived in Galveston, TX to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation, effectively ending slavery in the United States 2 1/2 years after the Proclamation took effect.
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