ATHOL—On June 19, the town’s Congregational Church will hold a Juneteenth celebration to inform people on the holiday’s history, as well as local connections.

Rev. Cindy LaJoy said the idea came about when Athol Daily News columnist Carla Charter approached her to ask if an event was planned for Juneteenth. A federal holiday, Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery in the United States and is observed annually on June 19. In 1863, during the President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared more than 3 million slaves living in the Confederate states to be free. More than two years would pass, however, before the news reached African Americans living in Texas. It was not until Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865, that the state’s residents finally learned that slavery had been abolished.

LaJoy said this is the first time the church has held such an event, with the goal of explaining Juneteenth’s origins.

“A lot of people don’t understand what we’re celebrating,” LaJoy said. “It explains the process of freeing the slaves. A lot of people think it’s the Emancipation Proclamation, but it goes well beyond that.”

Part of the event includes a showing of the film “Juneteenth: Exploring Freedom’s Stories,” produced by the Annenberg Classroom, followed by a guided discussion. LaJoy said that faith calls on people to be actively pursuing justice. Understanding the history of African Americans is important, she added, especially as younger people consider the 1860s to be ‘long ago.’

“People think it was 400 years ago and it really wasn’t,” she said.

Another part of the event will be a historical event that Charter put together following extensive research. She focused on African Americans who lived in the Athol area and surrounding communities. These include Rev. John Mars, a Methodist Pastor and abolitionist who lived in Athol and was a missionary in Canada for formerly enslaved African Americans. Other historical figures that will be featured are Violet Turner, a slave of who became a resident of Athol’s Poor Farm, Quock Walker of Barre, the first in Massachusetts to sue for his freedom, and Edom London of Winchendon, who served in the Battle of Bunker Hill as an escaped slave. Eight different historical figures will be detailed as part of the event. 

Charter said she hopes that people realize how much history has happened in this area and understand how precious freedom is.

“When you see something wrong, you stand up,” she said. “I want to see the history preserved. That’s big with me—we can’t pick and chose our history. It all needs to be told.”

The Juneteenth celebration will be held on Monday, June 19 at 10 a.m. at Athol Congregational Church, 1225 Chestnut St., Athol.

Max Bowen can be reached at mbowen@recorder.com or 413-930-4074. 

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