Davidson County event highlights Juneteenth history
Last updated: June 12, 2024, 9:45 AM EST
We’re just one week away from our newest federal holiday, June 19th. To commemorate this, the City of Lexington is hosting a series of events, some of which start this week. This year’s 5th Freedom Celebration is packed with local history, genealogy projects, and a variety of other events. So we want to hear more about how you can bring history to life. We’re joined live by Tina Royal, Executive Director of all things youth group activities. Tina, thanks for joining us. Good morning. I heard tomorrow is scanning day for our obituary project. What exactly is that and what should I bring to scan? Tomorrow we’re partnering with the genealogy department at the Lexington Public Library. Basically what we do is help people in the area research their genealogy. We have the Tonya Lanier Obituary Project. What we’re asking people to do is bring copies of obituaries of family members, community leaders, and other people in the African-American community to contribute to this project. We’re just trying to document history as best we can. Okay? And Tina, this Friday is Historic Cemetery Exploration Day. What will we learn there? We will have a brochure ready on Friday. We have a brochure that we researched through genealogy. We found a lot of cemeteries that have gravestones of people who were formerly slaves. So we created a brochure that puts together the different cemeteries and graveyards. People can pick up these brochures at the Lexington Public Library or at Lexington Tourism, which is near North Main Street and Lexington. You can use this brochure as a guide to go out and tour freely on Saturday. Saturday is also a memorial. We will talk about the importance of keeping this history alive and honoring it. This is very important. We also found in our research and information gathering that there is a Pilgrim Reformed Church cemetery on Pilgrim Reformed Church Road in Lexington. There are 16 grave markers in this cemetery for people who were formerly slaves. We will be having a memorial there. Hopefully, we would like to have the families and the people who will benefit from this come and see what we have found, because we think this is a part of history that has been left untouched for a long time. This is one of the things we are very excited about.We’re going to have a moment of silence and a memorial service and give people a chance to feel the moment while we’re there. And we’re also going to have a celebration on Sunday, right? Is this a Juneteenth Freedom Celebration in Lexington? Sunday? Yes. We’re really looking forward to it. We’re going to have this event at St. Stephen United Methodist Church in Lexington. St. Stephen is one of the historic black churches in Lexington. Dr. Arnold Beverly is going to be the pastor. She’s going to be officiating this service and it’s going to be really exciting, hearing the voices of our ancestors during the service. So we’re going to be sharing their memories and their history through the church service. We’re really looking forward to it. Tina, there’s a lot of events going on, but how does all of this tie into Juneteenth and the history that this holiday celebrates? We want people to know that Juneteenth was a very important day. It was the day that slavery ended in America. So what we want people to know is their true history and how we’ve made it through all these years and how far we’ve come. So what we want to do is not lose history. We want people to be conscious of history again, to talk about history, to make it as normal as waking up every day. So we want to make sure we instill this history in people. And it’s so important. June 19th is a time for people to think about history. That’s why we’re doing this. To keep people interested in the history of Lexington Davidson County. You know, it concerns all of us. But we want people to know their history. Here, locally. So, through all these events, we want to make history more accessible. Thank you so much for your time this morning. And again, it all starts tomorrow with the scanning session. The scanning session will be at the open house at 5pm at the Lexington Public Library on South Main Street. You can find a full list of other events happening this week on Facebook EVE.
Davidson County event highlights Juneteenth history
Last updated: June 12, 2024, 9:45 AM EST
Lexington has a packed itinerary of historic events and projects to mark Juneteenth in 2024. This year’s fifth annual Freedom Celebration kicks off with a scanning session on June 13th. The scanning session will take place during an open house at the Lexington Public Library on South Main Street, starting at 5pm. For more information, see the interview with The Local Vibe above. Thursday, June 13, 2024 – Lexington Public Library Open HouseTonya Lanier introduces the Obituary Project. Davidson County Historical Museum offers a photo scanning session. 5pm Friday, June 14, 2024 – Explore Historic Cemeteries Brochure2 North Main StreetLexington Public LibraryThe brochure provides details on historic former slave cemeteries and graveyards. Saturday, June 15, 2024 – Countywide Cemetery ExplorationMemorial ServicePilgrim Reformed United Church of Christ2847 City Lake Road, Lexington11:00 AMSunday, June 16, 2024 – Juneteenth Celebration Service11:00 AMSt. Stephen United Methodist Church100 E. 1st Street, LexingtonMonday, June 17, 2024 – Open Dialogue on Local Black Neighborhoods and Communities6:00 PMArts Theatre 202202 N. Main St., LexingtonDiscussion of the history of local Black neighborhoods.Wednesday, June 19, 2024 – Reflections on JuneteenthFor more information, contact Tina Royal, Director of Anything for Our Youth Group Inc. Juneteenth, also known as Emancipation Day, occurs annually on June 19th.This marks the anniversary of when Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger led his soldiers into the last slave stronghold in Galveston, Texas, to deliver the message that war and slavery were over. The announcement came more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. WATCH: NOWCAST STREAMING NEWSCASTNAVIGATE: Home | Weather | Watch NOWCAST TV | Local News | National | Your Favorite News | For the latest news and weather, download the WXII app here
LEXINGTON, N.C. —
Lexington has a packed itinerary of historic events and projects planned to mark Juneteenth in 2024.
The fifth annual Freedom Celebration will kick off with a scanning session on June 13. The scanning session will take place during an open house at the Lexington Public Library on South Main Street, starting at 5 p.m.
Check out the interview with The Local Vibe above for more details.
Thursday, June 13, 2024 — Lexington Public Library Open House
Tonya Lanier will present the Obituary Project. The Davidson County Historical Museum will host a photo scanning session. 5 p.m.
Friday, June 14, 2024 – Historic Cemetery Exploration Brochure
2 North Main Street The Lexington Public Library brochure details historic, former slave graveyards and burial grounds.
Saturday, June 15, 2024 – Countywide Cemetery Search
Memorial service at Pilgrim Reformed Church of Christ, 2847 City Lake Road, Lexington, 11 a.m.
Sunday, June 16, 2024 – Juneteenth Memorial Service
11 a.m. St. Stephen United Methodist Church, 100 E. 1st Street, Lexington
Monday, June 17, 2024 – Open dialogue on local Black neighborhoods and communities
At 6 p.m., Arts Theatre 202, 202 N. Main St. in Lexington, will discuss the history of local black neighborhoods.
Wednesday, June 19, 2024 – Reflecting on Juneteenth
For more information, please contact Tina Royal, Director of Anything for Our Youth Group Inc.
Juneteenth is celebrated annually on June 19th. It marks the anniversary of when Major General Gordon Granger led his soldiers into the last slave stronghold in Galveston, Texas, to announce an end to war and slavery. The announcement came more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.
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