Juneteenth commemorates the day when slaves in the
last geographic area in America where slavery existed learned of
their freedom. This took place on June 19, 1865 in Galveston, Texas,
when Union General Gordon Granger read General Order #3 announcing
that "all slaves are free" by Proclamation of President
Abraham Lincoln. The Emancipation Proclamation was issued by President
Lincoln on January 1, 1863. It took over 2-1/2 years for the news
to travel to southwest Texas.
Juneteenth, or the "19th of June" was recognized
by U.S. Congress as "Juneteenth Independence Day" (Senate
Joint Resolution 56 and House Joint Resolution 11 in 1997.
On June 29th, celebrate this and other accomplishments
of African Americans who valued their freedom and fought to preserve
it here in Yolo County. Too often we take our freedoms for granted
and fail to teach our children the importance of the sacrifices made.
We will also celebrate the 95th birthday of Amelia Nicks, a long-time
resident of Woodland and California native, born in Marysville.