Juneteenth celebrates the end of slavery in the United States. The holiday, celebrated on June 19, marks the anniversary of the announcement of the Union Army’s General Order No. 3 in 1865, which delivered the news of the Emancipation Proclamation to some of the most rural parts of Texas. Two and a half years after Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, several enslaved people were made aware of their freedom, resulting in an evolved Texas celebration into a national celebration!