06/18/2026
Juneteenth, often known as Freedom Day, has its roots at the end of the American Civil War, when U.S. troops arrived in Galveston, TX, and enforced the Emancipation Proclamation there. The Black community took to celebrating the anniversary each year, and it was adopted as a Federal holiday in 2021.
That same year, Historic Lewes hosted an exhibit entitled "Seventeen Men: Portraits of Black Civil War Soldiers," which featured paintings inspired by photographs of African-American soldiers who enlisted and trained at Camp William Penn in Philadelphia. Six of them hailed from Delaware.
180,000 Black soldiers enlisted in the U.S. Army and Navy during the conflict. Abraham Lincoln credited their contributions with turning the tide, decisively ending chattel slavery in America.
We will be observing a partial closure in recognition of this rich and meaningful holiday.
