Walking Through Freedom: Galveston’s landmarks bring Juneteenth history to life

Juneteenth, Civil Rights and More: Why June 19 Stands Out in History

On June 19, one of the most significant events in modern history is the end of slavery in the United States being publicly enforced in Texas in 1865, a moment now remembered as Juneteenth. More than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation had declared enslaved people in Confederate-held territory free, Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston and announced that slavery had ended. At the time, this mattered because it turned a lega…

Union troops arrive in Galveston on ‘Juneteenth’

Today is Friday, June 19, the 170th day of 2026. There are 195 days left in the year. This is Juneteenth.

Walking Through Freedom: Galveston’s landmarks bring Juneteenth history to life

More than 160 years after Union Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston and announced General Order No. 3, informing enslaved Texans they were free, the island remains the spiritual home of Juneteenth.