June 19th, 1865 is an important date in American history. Unfortunately, its significance is not well advertised towards a large portion of the population.
69 days after the conclusion of the Civil War, U.S. troops took control of the state of Texas in the town of Gavleston and read aloud General Order No. 3 to its citizens, which declared all slaves to be free. Texas was the last state to recognize the Emancipation Proclamation.
This date later became known as Juneteenth, short for June 19th.
Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle Mike Daniels remembers celebrating on this day growing up, but he didn’t use to know why.