County Commissioners Sign Juneteenth Proclamation

The Fayette County Commissioners Court signed a proclamation designating June 19 as Emancipation Day in Fayette County. June 19, known as Juneteenth, marks the day in 1865 in Galveston when Major General Gordon Granger read General Order No. 3, which informed the people of Texas that all slaves had been set free. President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation more than two years earlier, but the news had not reached Texas due to the Civil War. Local Juneteenth Celebration organizer Verlia Mosley Rhodes spoke at the Commissioners Court meeting last Thursday. She invited elected officials and the public to attend the Juneteenth Celebration on the Courthouse Square on Saturday, June 13, which takes place from 5-10 p.m. Pictured are (from left) Pct. 4 Commissioner Drew Brossmann, Pct. 3 Commissioner Harvey Berckenhoff, County Judge Dan Mueller, Mrs. Mosley Rhodes and her grandson Kharma Sneed, Pct. 1 Commissioner Jason McBroom and Pct. 2 Commissioner Clint Sternadel. Staff photo by Andy Behlen A photo of a band from a previous Juneteenth on the Square event in La Grange.