With colorful illustrations and a timeline, this introductory history of Juneteenth for kids details the evolution of the holiday commemorating the date the enslaved people of Texas first learned of their freedom​. On June 19, 1865—more than two years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation—the enslaved people of Texas first learned of their freedom. That day became a day of remembrance and celebration that changed and grew from year to year. Learn about the events that led to emancipation and why it took so long for the enslaved people in Texas to hear the news. The first Juneteenth began as “Jubilee Day,” where families celebrated and learned of their new rights as citizens. As Black Texans moved to other parts of the country, they brought their traditions along with them, and Juneteenth continued to grow and develop. Today, Juneteenth’s powerful spirit has endured through the centuries to become an official holiday in the United States in 2021. The Juneteenth Story provides an accessible introduction for kids to learn about this important American holiday.

The Juneteenth Story is an illustrated history of Juneteenth for kids, detailing its evolution from the first celebration in 1865 until it became a national holiday in 2021.

Juneteenth--the day Texan slaves found out they had been freed, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation--is June's favorite holiday. This year, though, her cousin Lillie will be there for the Juneteenth picnic. This could spoil everything, for Lillie has no interest in celebrating this Texas tradition. But great-great Aunt Marshall just may be able to convince Lillie otherwise. Full color.

This play within a play opens in the present time in a Minneapolis, Minnesota soul-food restaurant where a group of youth discuss the meaning of Juneteenth. They decide to attend a play on the subject and the story shifts into the American Civil War era, with Frederick Douglass as narrator. While on a cattle selling trip for his Master, Lewis, a young slave, learns that Abraham Lincoln has freed the slaves. To prevent this knowledge from spreading to other slaves, Lewis is murdered by slave patrollers. Over the next two years, Lewis's spirit works to protect his people until the 1865 Juneteenth announcement of freedom.

Juneteenth, which is celebrated each year on June 19th, commemorates the end of slavery in the United States. This holiday began in 1865, more than two years after President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. News spread much slower back then, and when slaves in Texas finally learned of their freedom, the holiday was born. In this book, readers are given an in-depth look at the history of Juneteenth, including the events leading up to its creation. Readers will love learning about how this important moment in U.S. history is celebrated each year.

This moving picture book tells the story of Juneteenth with all the care and reverence such a holiday deserves. The rhyming text and stunning illustrations will teach children about this historic day in history. 'Twas the night before freedom, and all through the South, long-whispered rumors had, spread word of mouth. "It’s coming! It’s coming!" I heard people say. "Emancipation is coming our way." Eight-year-old David and his family gather at Grandma’s house in Galveston, Texas, for a cherished family tradition: Grandma’s annual retelling of the story of Juneteenth, the holiday that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States. The signing of the Emancipation Proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln meant that all enslaved persons within the rebellious states would be free as of January 1, 1863. However, people in Texas did not receive the news of their emancipation until two and a half years later—on June 19, 1865. Grandma tells the story of anticipation, emancipation, and jubilation just as it was told to her many years before by her own grandmother, Mom Bess. As a six-year-old, Bess had experienced the very first Juneteenth. Before that day, she could only imagine what liberty would look like. But once freedom arrived, would it live up to a little girl’s dreams? The story is written in the same meter as Clement C. Moore's The Night Before Christmas, making it a perfect book for parents and kids to read together.

Kumbayah...The Juneteenth Story is a fictional, two-act play that addresses a factual and traumatic event - the rape of emancipation against African people who were held as captives in the United States. Lewis, is a brilliant young slave who is about to turn twenty-one years old. As a birthday present, Mastah Turner has promised Lewis his freedom. In 1863, while on a cattle-selling trip in Galveston, Texas for the ailing Mastah Turner, Lewis learns that President Abraham Lincoln has freed the slaves. As he returns to the plantation, exuberant over the news of freedom, Lewis is stopped by Pattyrollers (slave catchers). Since Lewis knows the guarded secret, fatality becomes inevitable. Over the next two and a half years, his mythical spirit (perhaps interpreted by devout storytellers as John De Conqueror) soars over the earth and through the skies as an eagle serving as a "protector" to his people. Finally, word of freedom gets delivered to the Texas captives via General Gordon Granger who issues the mandate on June 19, 1865... thus the term Juneteenth.