June 19 is Juneteenth, officially Juneteenth National Independence Day. It is a federal holiday in the United States. It is celebrated annually on June 19 to commemorate the ending of slavery in the United States.
The holiday’s name is a combination of the words “June” and “nineteenth”, as it was on June 19, 1865, when Major General Gordon Granger ordered the final enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation in Texas at the end of the American Civil War. Although this date commemorates enslaved people learning of their freedom under the Emancipation Proclamation, this only applied to former Confederate states. There remained legally enslaved people in states that never seceded from the Union. These people did not gain their freedom until the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution on December 6, 1865.
This year, for the first time, Juneteenth is a free entry day at America’s national parks.
Each year in recent years, the National Park Service has waived entry fees on a handful of dates like the first day of National Park Week and Veterans Day. In announcing this year’s dates, National Park Service Director Chuck Sams said, “The entrance fee-free days expand opportunities for people to visit their national parks.” Among the parks on today’s list, Biddy Mason Memorial Park, a tribute to Bridget “Biddy” Mason, who was born into slavery, fought for her freedom, and became a wealthy Los Angeles property owner and philanthropist.
In 1866, she purchased the land that is now present-day Broadway (then Fort Street) and Spring Street, between 3rd and 4th Streets and built her homestead.
According to CapitolBNews.org, Mason’s land purchase marked the beginning of the development of what’s known today as downtown Los Angeles. This was before systemically racist laws and policies were developed that kept Black people from achieving generational wealth. Biddy opened a variety of businesses that sold everyday necessities, and other business owners bought their properties around hers.
The website says Mason may have been born into slavery, but she died an entrepreneur, philanthropist, real estate mogul, midwife, nurse, and one of the wealthiest people in California at age 73 in 1891.
To learn more about pioneer Biddy Mason and her memorial park, take a look at the following websites:
*FreedomCenter.org/Heroes/Bridget-Biddy-Mason
*CapitolBNews.org
*NPS.Gov/People/BiddyMason.htm
*LAConservancy.org
Biddy Mason Memorial Park
333 South Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA 90013
Open Noon to 7 p.m.
LAConservancy.org/Learn/Historic-Places/Biddy-Mason-Memorial-Park
If you have questions, please feel free to contact Gayle Anderson at 323-460-5732, email Gayle at Gayle.Anderson@KTLA.com, Facebook: Gayle Anderson, Instagram: KTLAChannel5Gayle and Twitter: KTLA5Gayle.
Gayle Anderson reports for the KTLA 5 News on June 19, 2024.