Juneteenth
The news that Abraham Lincoln and the Federal Government had officially freed the slaves reached Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865. That summer the information quickly spread north to Indian Territory. Later, as the region opened to non-Indian settlement and large numbers of African Americans relocated to the future state, communities began to celebrate Juneteenth, celebrating emancipation. These events sometimes lasted all day and included parades, picnics, speeches, and dances. At the beginning of the twenty-first century the tradition lives, with the Tulsa jazz festival, Juneteenth on Greenwood, a major example. Even famous Oklahoma-born writer Ralph Ellison recalls the significance of this day in his novel, Juneteenth.
Information provided by Larry O'Dell, Historian
Return to African American Events/Topics
Return to History Topics