Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865 when Union Army Major General Gordon Granger led troops into Galveston, Texas, to inform the people of Texas that slaves were freed by the Emancipation Proclamation — nearly two-and-a-half years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863 and two months after Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox.
This is the text of the order that Granger read aloud that day:
“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 has been celebrated by African Americans with community gatherings since the 1800s, but little interest existed outside the African American community in participation in the celebrations, according to Juneteenth.com.
“In some cases, there was outwardly exhibited resistance by barring the use of public property for the festivities. Most of the festivities found themselves out in rural areas around rivers and creeks that could provide for additional activities such as fishing, horseback riding and barbecues. Often church grounds were the site for such activities,” according to “History of Juneteenth” on Juneteenth.com.
Celebrations declined in the Jim Crow era and throughout the 20th Century until the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and ‘60s.
In 1980, Texas, the last state to recognize the emancipation of slaves, became the first state to make Juneteenth a state holiday.
Juneteenth became a state holiday in New York with in 2020.
On June 17, 2021 President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, which established June 19 as a federal holiday. It was the first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was established as a federal holiday on Nov. 3, 1983, by legislation signed by President Ronald Reagan.
Juneteenth closings and schedule changes
Banks, schools, the post office, government offices, courts and the stock exchanges are closed today.
There is no U.S. mail delivery today, but UPS and FedEx will have regular operations.
The LIRR and Suffolk County Transit buses will operate on a regular weekday schedule.
Riverhead municipal trash pickup follows a regular schedule today.
Riverhead Free Library is closed.
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