On Saturday June 18 of 2022, in Darlington, MD from 12:00 noon to 6pm, there will be a Juneteenth Festival in Harford County by the Historic Hosanna School Museum. Juneteenth is the oldest commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States. 

     According to the Hosanna School Museum’s website, on June 19, 1865, two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation, Union General Gordon Granger announced the end of the war and read the General Order No. 3 in Galveston, Texas which declared the end of slavery. 

     Since then, Juneteenth has been known as a United States holiday in 47 of the 50 states. Maryland legislatures testified in March 2021 to make Juneteenth a paid holiday. Now all state employees receive pay on Juneteenth. 

     Then, on June 17, 2021, President Joe Biden declared Juneteenth a National Federal Holiday.

     However, the 2021 celebration of Juneteenth is Hosanna School Museum’s fifth year hosting a celebration. According to their website, last year Hosanna hosted a hybrid program including a mask giveaway and sale. 

     This year, there will be food, fun, vendors, performances, history and more. It is a day filled with education, entertainment and features a “Transition to Freedom” concert, according to Hosanna’s website. 

     Also, in their third year celebrating Juneteenth, Hosanna’s attendance nearly doubled from the previous year to over 2,200 visitors. This year, that will hopefully be topped. 

     As previously mentioned, there will be a “Transition to Freedom” concert which is the African-American experience expressed through music and performed by Rhema Praise.

     This year, Juneteenth is being sponsored by Harford County Maryland, Maryland Heritage Area, Lower Susquehanna Heritage Greenway, HCPL, MSAC (Maryland State Arts Council), and more.

     Citizens are very excited to take part in this wonderful activity, especially because it is about a very large part of United States history.

     The point of Hosanna School Museum creating this celebration is to encourage change and to make sure everyone understands what happened all those years ago. 

     Juneteenth was first celebrated in 1866 in Texas, according to Britannica.com. The celebration has spread like wildfire with each year a new state or area in the U.S. joining in. Now, it has drifted up the East Coast to Maryland and, of course, Harford County.