June 19, 1865--
Two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation, in June of 1865, Major General Gordon Granger and more than 2,000 Federal soldiers of the 13th Army Corps arrived in Galveston. Granger’s men marched through Galveston reading General Order No. 3 at numerous locations, including their headquarters at the Osterman Building, 1861 Custom House, courthouse, and the then Negro Church (today’s Reedy Chapel-AME Church) on Broadway.
On June 19, 1865, according to legend, Gen. Gordon read aloud the contents of General Order No. 3 from the wrought-iron balcony of Galveston’s Ashton Villa. First known as “Emancipation Day,” Juneteenth was later renamed with a term combining June, nineteenth, and jubilation. Ashton Villa is now known as a gathering place for Juneteenth celebrations.
General Order No. 3 was similarly read and shared at the U.S. Customs House on 1918 Postoffice St. Known as the first building erected by the United States of America for civil uses in the state of Texas, the custom house was a central location for business on the island, acting as a custom and court house and post office.
Reedy AME Chapel has been an important part of the Black & African American community in Galveston for over 150 years. It is Texas' first AME church and marks another location where the news of emancipation was announced. (Images and text from Texas A&M Galveston newsroom)
June 19, 1866-- Freedmen in Texas organized the first of what became the annual celebration of “Jubilee Day.”
Early celebrations were used as political rallies to give voting instructions to newly freed slaves. (From Harlem World Magazine)
June 19, 1878--Galveston newspaper Flake's Bulletin began providing local coverage of Juneteenth celebrations.
Flake’s Bulletin was also printing wire reports from across the state devoted to Emancipation celebrations in Brenham, Marlin, Liberty, Bastrop and elsewhere. African-Americans throughout Texas observed June 19 with parades and picnics, speeches and dancing. In many communities, groups bought their own land for this and other events, often naming these tracts Emancipation Park. (From the Galveston Historical Foundation and Texas Lifestyle and Travel Magazine)
June 19, 1938--Texas Governor J.V Allred issued a proclamation declaring Juneteenth Emancipation Day in Texas
"Whereas, June 19, 1938, this year falls on Sunday; NOW, THEREFORE, I, JAMES V. ALLRED, Governor of the State of Texas, do set aside and proclaim the day of June 20, 1938, as the date for the observance of EMANCIPATION DAY in Texas, and do urge all members of the Negro race in Texas to observe the day in a manner appropriate to its importance to them." (From Harlem World Magazine)
June 19, 1979--An annual Juneteenth celebration at Ashton Villa began.
In 1979, the Galveston Juneteenth Committee under the leadership of former city manager Doug Matthews and Texas Representative Al Edwards initiated an annual Galveston Juneteenth Celebration on the lawn of Ashton Villa. The event commemorates the reading of General Order No. 3 through prayer, reflections, and community leadership.
January 1st, 1980--Juneteenth is officially made a Texas state holiday.
In 1979 the Texas Legislature declared Juneteenth a “holiday of significance […] particularly to the blacks of Texas”. It was the first state to establish Juneteenth as a state holiday under legislation introduced by freshman Democratic state representative Al Edwards.
June 19, 2006--A statue of the reading of General Order No. 3 was erected on the grounds of Ashton Villa.
In 2006, the Juneteenth Committee and the City of Galveston erected a statue of the late Rep. Al Edwards holding a copy of General Order No. 3, which he had read every year on June 19 since 1979 to commemorate Juneteenth.
June 19, 2014--the Texas Historical Commission placed a marker at the corner of 22nd and Strand.
The marker is near the location of Galveston’s Osterman Building, where General Granger had his headquarters and first read General Orders, No. 3.
June 17, 2021--President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law, which made Juneteenth a national holiday.
Juneteenth became the first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was adopted in 1983.
June 19, 2021--Galveston based organization, The Juneteenth Legacy Project, dedicates a 5,000-square-foot mural entitled “Absolute Equality,” on the spot where Gen. Gordon Granger issued the orders that resulted in the freedom of more than 250,000 enslaved Black people in Texas.
Reginald C. Adams and his team of artists, known as the Creatives, painted the permanent installation on the east elevation wall of the Old Galveston Square Building that overlooks the site (the former Osterman Building located at 22nd Street and Strand) of General Granger’s headquarters. The 5,000 square foot art installation displays five portals depicting an evolutionary narrative, including enslaved Africans being marched onto ships (including Esteban, the first nonnative enslaved person, who arrived shipwrecked on Galveston Island in 1528); Harriet Tubman, the leader of the Underground Railroad that ferried enslaved Black people to freedom north of the Mason-Dixon line; Abraham Lincoln holding the Emancipation Proclamation; Granger issuing General Order No. 3 on Juneteenth, flanked by Black Union soldier; and most notably a parade of people marching in pursuit of Absolute Equality. Significantly, the words in General Order No. 3, "absolute equality," is incorporated into the installation's graphics. (Image and text from The Juneteenth Legacy Project)
On Juneteenth by
Weaving together American history, dramatic family chronicle, and searing episodes of memoir, Annette Gordon-Reed's On Juneteenth provides a historian's view of the country's long road to Juneteenth, recounting both its origins in Texas and the enormous hardships that African-Americans have endured in the century since, from Reconstruction through Jim Crow and beyond. All too aware of the stories of cowboys, ranchers, and oilmen that have long dominated the lore of the Lone Star State, Gordon-Reed--herself a Texas native and the descendant of enslaved people brought to Texas as early as the 1820s--forges a new and profoundly truthful narrative of her home state, with implications for us all.Combining personal anecdotes with poignant facts gleaned from the annals of American history, Gordon-Reed shows how, from the earliest presence of Black people in Texas to the day in Galveston on June 19, 1865, when Major General Gordon Granger announced the end of legalized slavery in the state, African-Americans played an integral role in the Texas story.Reworking the traditional "Alamo" framework, she powerfully demonstrates, among other things, that the slave- and race-based economy not only defined the fractious era of Texas independence but precipitated the Mexican-American War and, indeed, the Civil War itself.In its concision, eloquence, and clear presentation of history, On Juneteenth vitally revises conventional renderings of Texas and national history. As our nation verges on recognizing June 19 as a national holiday, On Juneteenth is both an essential account and a stark reminder that the fight for equality is exigent and ongoing.
Juneteenth Texas by
Juneteenth Texas, Publications of the Texas Folklore Society #LIV, received a San Antonio Conservation Society award for the preservation of historic buildings, objects and places relating to the history of Texas and its natural beauty and all that is admirably distinctive of our state, and to educate the public with knowledge of our inherited regional values.
Being Texan by
The editors of Texas Monthly explore what it means to be a Texan in this anthology packed with essays, reportage, recipes, and recommendations from their renowned list of contributors. Big hats, big trucks, big oil fortunes--Texas clichés all. And while those elements do flourish throughout Texas, they alone hardly define the place. The Lone Star State is and has always been a great melting pot, home to sprawling cities, trailblazing innovators, and treasured traditions from all over, many of which become ingrained in popular culture and intertwined with the American ideal. In this collection, the editors of Texas Monthly take stock of their multifaceted, larger-than-life state, including the people, customs, land, culture, and cuisine that have collided and comingled here. Featuring essays, reportage, recipes, and recommendations from the magazine's legendary roster of contributors, and accompanied by original drawings, Being Texan explores the landscapes that are home to more than 29 million people; the joys and idiosyncrasies of Texan life; underappreciated episodes of Texas history; and distinctive strains of Texan arts and culture. Illuminating, surprising, and entertaining, Being Texan reveals the Lone Star State in all its beauty, vastness, and complexity.
Watermelon and Red Birds by
The very first cookbook to celebrate Juneteenth, from food writer and cookbook author Nicole A. Taylor--who draws on her decade of experiences observing the holiday. On June 19, 1865, more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston and issued General Order Number 3, informing the people of Texas that all enslaved people were now free. A year later, in 1866, Black Texans congregated with music, dance, and BBQs--Juneteenth celebrations. All-day cook-outs with artful salads, bounteous dessert spreads, and raised glasses of "red drink" are essential to Juneteenth gatherings. In Watermelon and Red Birds, Nicole puts jubilation on the main stage. As a master storyteller and cook, she bridges the traditional African-American table and 21st-century flavors in stories and recipes. Nicole synthesizes all the places we've been, all the people we have come from, all the people we have become, and all the culinary ideas we have embraced. Watermelon and Red Birds contains over 75 recipes, including drinks like Afro Egg Cream and Marigold Gin Sour, dishes like Beef Ribs with Fermented Harissa Sauce, Peach Jam and Molasses Glazed Chicken Thighs, Southern-ish Potato Salad and Cantaloupe and Feta Salad, and desserts like Roasted Nectarine Sundae, and Radish and Ginger Pound Cake. Taylor also provides a resource to guide readers to BIPOC-owned hot sauces, jams, spice, and waffle mixes companies and lists fun gadgets to make your Juneteenth special. These recipes and essays will inspire parties to salute one of the most important American holidays, and moments to savor joy all year round.
Juneteenth by
Shot on the Senate floor by a young Black man, a dying racist senator summons an elderly Black Baptist minister from Oklahoma to his side for a remarkable dialogue that reveals the deeply buried secrets of their shared past and the tragedy that reunites them.
Come Juneteenth by
Sis Goose is a beloved member of Luli's family, despite the fact that she was born a slave. But the family is harboring a terrible secret. And when Union soldiers arrive on their Texas plantation to announce that slaves have been declared free for nearly two years, Sis Goose is horrified to learn that the people she called family have lied to her for so long. She runs away--but her newly found freedom has tragic consequences. How could the state of Texas keep the news of the Emancipation Proclamation from reaching slaves? In this riveting Great Episodes historical drama, Ann Rinaldi sheds light on the events that led to the creation of Juneteenth, a celebration of freedom that continues today. Includes an author's note.
How the Word Is Passed by
This "important and timely" (Drew Faust, Harvard Magazine) #1 New York Times bestseller examines the legacy of slavery in America--and how both history and memory continue to shape our everyday lives. Beginning in his hometown of New Orleans, Clint Smith leads the reader on an unforgettable tour of monuments and landmarks--those that are honest about the past and those that are not--that offer an intergenerational story of how slavery has been central in shaping our nation's collective history, and ourselves. It is the story of the Monticello Plantation in Virginia, the estate where Thomas Jefferson wrote letters espousing the urgent need for liberty while enslaving more than four hundred people. It is the story of the Whitney Plantation, one of the only former plantations devoted to preserving the experience of the enslaved people whose lives and work sustained it. It is the story of Angola, a former plantation-turned-maximum-security prison in Louisiana that is filled with Black men who work across the 18,000-acre land for virtually no pay. And it is the story of Blandford Cemetery, the final resting place of tens of thousands of Confederate soldiers. A deeply researched and transporting exploration of the legacy of slavery and its imprint on centuries of American history, How the Word Is Passed illustrates how some of our country's most essential stories are hidden in plain view--whether in places we might drive by on our way to work, holidays such as Juneteenth, or entire neighborhoods like downtown Manhattan, where the brutal history of the trade in enslaved men, women, and children has been deeply imprinted. Informed by scholarship and brought to life by the story of people living today, Smith's debut work of nonfiction is a landmark of reflection and insight that offers a new understanding of the hopeful role that memory and history can play in making sense of our country and how it has come to be. Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction Winner of the Stowe Prize Winner of 2022 Hillman Prize for Book Journalism A New York Times 10 Best Books of 2021
The Strange Career of William Ellis by
A prize-winning historian tells a new story of the black experience in America through the life of a mysterious entrepreneur. To his contemporaries in Gilded Age Manhattan, Guillermo Eliseo was a fantastically wealthy Mexican, the proud owner of a luxury apartment overlooking Central Park, a busy Wall Street office, and scores of mines and haciendas in Mexico. But for all his obvious riches and his elegant appearance, Eliseo was also the possessor of a devastating secret: he was not, in fact, from Mexico at all. Rather, he had begun life as a slave named William Ellis, born on a cotton plantation in southern Texas during the waning years of King Cotton. After emancipation, Ellis, capitalizing on the Spanish he learned during his childhood along the Mexican border and his ambivalent appearance, engaged in a virtuoso act of reinvention. He crafted an alter ego, the Mexican Guillermo Eliseo, who was able to access many of the privileges denied to African Americans at the time: traveling in first-class train berths, staying in upscale hotels, and eating in the finest restaurants. Eliseo's success in crossing the color line, however, brought heightened scrutiny in its wake as he became the intimate of political and business leaders on both sides of the US-Mexico border. Ellis, unlike many passers, maintained a connection to his family and to black politics that also raised awkward questions about his racial status. Yet such was Ellis's skill in manipulating his era's racial codes, most of the whites he encountered continued to insist that he must be Hispanic even as Ellis became embroiled in scandals that hinted the man known as Guillermo Eliseo was not quite who he claimed to be. The Strange Career of William Ellis reads like a novel but offers fresh insights on the history of the Reconstruction era, the US-Mexico border, and the abiding riddle of race. At a moment when the United States is deepening its connections with Latin America and recognizing that race is more than simply black or white, Ellis's story could not be more timely or important.
How the Word Is Passed by Clint Smith
ISBN: 9781549138393
Publication Date: 06-01-2021
Clint Smith leads the reader on an unforgettable tour of monuments and landmarks--those that are honest about the past and those that are not--that offer an intergenerational story of how slavery has been central in shaping our nation's collective history, and ourselves.
On Juneteenth by Annette Gordon-Reed
ISBN: 9781631498848
Publication Date: 05-04-2021
On Juneteenth provides a historian's view of the country's long road to Juneteenth, recounting both its origins in Texas and the enormous hardships that African-Americans have endured in the century since, from Reconstruction through Jim Crow and beyond.
Come Juneteenth by Ann Rinaldi
ISBN: 9780547351704
Publication Date: 05-04-2009
Fourteen-year-old Luli and her family face tragedy after failing to tell their slaves that President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation made them free.
Miss Juneteenth
Call Number: DVD MISS
Publication Date: 2020
Former beauty queen and single mom prepares her rebellious teenage daughter for the "Miss Juneteenth" pageant.