Learn: African American History

Even though the Emancipation Proclamation was made effective in 1863, it could not be implemented in western states still under Confederate control. It wasn’t until two years later on June 19, 1865, those enslaved in Galveston, Texas learned of their freedom. On that day, Mayor General Gordon Granger came to town with 2,000 Union troops announcing that over 25,000 enslaved black people in Texas were free.