‘Emancipation Day,’ or ‘Freedom Day’ in Florida May 20
WELCOME BACK. EMANCIPATION DAY IS A SPECIAL LOCAL EVENT HELD EVERY MAY TO MARK THE DAY IN 1865 WHEN NEWS OF FREEDOM OFFICIALLY REACHED FLORIDA, TELLING THE SLAVES THAT THEY WERE NO LONGER. THEY’RE NOW FREE. CORRECT. JOINING ME NOW IS BRYAN WYSONG, THE CAMP COMMANDER AND SONS OF UNION VETERANS OF THE CIVIL WAR CAMP NUMBER THREE, TO TELL US MORE ABOUT THIS EVENT. BRYAN, I WAS JUST TELLING YOU, WE WERE TALKING ABOUT WHAT MAY 20TH MEANS IN FLORIDA. AND SO MANY OF US HERE IN THE NEWSROOM DID NOT KNOW WHAT IT IS. SO IT’S THE UNION SOLDIERS REACH FLORIDA MADE THE ANNOUNCEMENT IN TALLAHASSEE THAT SLAVES WERE NOW FREE BEFORE THEY GOT TO TEXAS, WHICH IS WHAT JUNETEENTH IS. CORRECT. THE CIVIL WAR, TECHNICALLY, FOR ALL PRACTICAL PURPOSES, ENDED IN APRIL, WHEN ROBERT LEE SURRENDERED. BUT THE WORD TOOK A LONG TIME TO GET TO FLORIDA AND ANY OF THE SOUTHERN STATES JUST BECAUSE OF THE DESTRUCTION AND THE DISTANCE. SO FEDERAL FORCES ENTERED FLORIDA IN EARLY MAY, ACCEPTED THE SURRENDER OF FLORIDA TROOPS, AND THEN GENERAL EDWARD MCCOOK SIGNED, STOOD ON THE STEPS OF THE COURTHOUSE IN TALLAHASSEE ON MAY 20TH, 1865, AND READ THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION, OFFICIALLY ENDING SLAVERY IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR THE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY HERE IN FLORIDA? I THINK IT’S SOMETHING THAT MOST PEOPLE ARE NOT AWARE OF. SO WE’RE TRYING TO GET THE WORD OUT TO EVERYBODY IN FLORIDA TO LET THEM KNOW THAT THIS WAS A SIGNIFICANT EVENT IN OUR HISTORY, THE END OF A VERY TERRIBLE PERIOD OF OUR HISTORY AND THE BEGINNING OF A NEW PERIOD, RECONSTRUCTION FOR GOOD OR ILL. AND THE EVENT IS SPONSORED BY THE MARTIN COUNTY BLACK HERITAGE FOUNDATION. YES. MARTIN COUNTY BLACK HERITAGE INITIATIVE, ALONG WITH MARTIN ARTS COUNCIL, ARE THE SPONSORS FOR THIS EVENT. THE SONS OF UNION, VETERANS OF THE CIVIL WAR AND DAUGHTERS OF UNION. VETERANS OF THE CIVIL WAR ARE SUPPORTING. OKAY. SO WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THE EVENT HAPPENING ON SATURDAY? AND STUART. SURE. AT 10:00 AT THE GAZEBO AT THE COURTHOUSE CULTURAL ARTS CENTER AND GALLERY, WE’RE GOING TO HAVE SOME LOCAL MUSICIANS PLAY PATRIOTIC AND HISTORIC MUSIC. AND THEN AT 11:00, WE’LL ACTUALLY START THE CEREMONY, THE HIGHLIGHT OF WHICH IS GOING TO BE A LOCAL RE-ENACTOR WHO IS GOING TO PORTRAY GENERAL MCCOOK READING THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION FOR THE FIRST TIME IN FLORIDA, AND THEN AFTERWARDS, WE’VE GOT SEVERAL PRESENTATIONS IN THE GALLERY THAT I THINK WILL BE INTERESTING FOR PEOPLE TO HEAR ABOUT. AND WHAT IS THE TURNOUT LIKE? AS WE’VE BEEN SAYING AGAIN, NO ONE HERE IN THE NEWSROOM KNEW ABOUT MAY 20TH, BUT IT’S BEEN 151 YEARS THIS YEAR. RIGHT? IT WAS CELEBRATED STATEWIDE FOR A LONG TIME, BUT KIND OF HAD A SLOWING DOWN PERIOD. AND I THINK MOST IN THE LAST 20 YEARS, IT HASN’T BEEN DONE. IN FACT, THIS IS OUR INAUGURAL EVENT IN MARTIN COUNTY, AND WE’RE HOPING TO HAVE IT PICK UP EVERY YEAR AND MAYBE A ROTATIONAL BASIS BETWEEN MARTIN AND PALM BEACH COUNTY AND SAINT LUCIE. THERE’S GOING TO BE A FLAG PRESENTATION AS WELL. YES, WE HAVE THE SONS OF VETERAN RESERVE, WHICH WILL BE UNIFORMED VETERANS GROUP IN COMING IN CIVIL WAR UNIFORMS THAT WILL TROOP THE COLORS. WE HAVE A BUGLER PLAYING SOME PERIOD BUGLE CALLS AS PART OF THE CEREMONY, AND THEN THE PRESENTATIONS AFTERWARDS ARE ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTION OF AFRICAN AMERICAN SOLDIERS IN THE CIVIL WAR OR THE U.S. COLORED TROOPS, AS THEY WERE CALLED BACK THEN. AND THEN WE HAVE A WONDERFUL PRESENTATION BY MARCIA ETTING, WHO IS GOING TO PORTRAY LOUISA MAY ALCOTT, WHO YOU PROBABLY KNOW AS THE WRITER OF THE AUTHOR OF LITTLE WOMEN. BUT SHE ALSO TRIED TO JOIN THE UNION ARMY AT THE BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR. SHE WAS VERY FERVENT ABOLITIONIST. AND SHE, OF COURSE, WAS TURNED DOWN, BUT SHE ENDED UP VOLUNTEERING AS A HOSPITAL NURSE AND THEN HELPED ONE OF THE FOUNDERS OF THE UNITED STATES SANITARY COMMISSION. ALL RIGHT. WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE AND TELLING US ALL ABOUT THIS EVENT. FOR MORE INFORMATION, HEAD TO OUR WEBSITE, WPBF.COM. WE PUT
Emancipation Day is a special local event held every May to mark the day in 1865 when news of freedom officially reached Florida. Stay up to date: The latest headlines and weather from WPBF 25Brian Wysong, camp commander of Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War Camp #3, joined the event to honor this historic occasion.Get the latest weather updates with the WPBF 25 News app. You can download it here.
Emancipation Day is a special local event held every May to mark the day in 1865 when news of freedom officially reached Florida.
Stay up to date: The latest headlines and weather from WPBF 25
Brian Wysong, camp commander of Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War Camp #3, joined the event to honor this historic occasion.
Get the latest weather updates with the WPBF 25 News app. You can download it here.