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Juneteenth Commemoration

Juneteenth Commemoration
Mayor Currin signed a proclamation on June 15, 2021, recognizing June 19th as Juneteenth Day in Rolesville.

 

Juneteenth History

Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the United States. A combination of the words “June” and “nineteenth,” Juneteenth commemorates Union Major General Gordon Granger’s reading of the ‘General Order Number 3’ in the City of Galveston, Texas freeing enslaved people on June 19, 1865. The reading of ‘General Order Number 3’ came 2 and a half years after President Abraham Lincoln enacted the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862. News and enforcement of the proclamation had been slow to reach remote areas of the United States. 

Today, Juneteenth celebrates African American freedom and achievement, while encouraging continuous self-development and respect for all cultures.

General Granger’s 'General Order Number 3' began with:

"The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired laborer."


Juneteenth Commemoration

June 15, 2024
Location TBA
Time TBA

More information coming soon.