What's Happening In Ellicott City For Juneteenth 2023, What's Open And Closed In HoCo

ELLICOTT CITY, MD — Juneteenth observances in Howard County kick off with a day of special events Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. during the Free LakeFest Weekend.

The day-long celebration will feature live music from Grammy winner and NEA Jazz Master Delfeayo Marsalis along with sets from JoGo Project and Deborah Bond, a pop-up cookout from noon to 5 p.m. with barbecue favorites, performances from the Wilde Lake High School Step Team (G4L) and B. Funk Dance Company, line dancing with Dancing Diva April and more. The commemoration will take place at the Downtown Columbia Lakefront. For a complete listing of Juneteenth events, visit https://columbiafestival.org/l....

On Sunday, the Howard County Center of African American Culture will feature a Juneteenth program in Howard Community College's Smith Theatre at 7 p.m. The evening features performances by Savoy McIlwain, Duane Moody and Everette Williams in a concert of spirituals, arts songs and opera.

The Monday, June 19, national holiday commemorates the day in 1865, more than two years after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, when word finally reached the last enslaved people in Texas that the Civil War had ended, and they were free.

Also known as Emancipation Day, Freedom Day and Jubilee Day, Juneteenth is the oldest-known celebration of the end of slavery in the United States. In 2021, President Joe Biden signed legislation making it a federal holiday, the first since the addition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1983.

• Related: What Is Juneteenth? Celebrating The End Of Slavery

Because Juneteenth is an official U.S. holiday, many banks, federal offices and post offices in Howard County will be closed Monday. State, county and local government offices will be closed as well.

Howard County government offices, 50+ centers, courts and the county animal shelter will be closed in observance of the Juneteenth National Freedom Day holiday on Monday. There will be regular Monday curbside trash, recycling, yard trim and food scrap collections on Monday and the Alpha Ridge Landfill will be open.

“In 2021, we took the important step of making Juneteenth National Freedom Day an official County holiday,” Howard County Executive Calvin Ball said. “Recognizing this historic day in our country’s history, which commemorates the end of slavery in the United States, affords our community the opportunity to learn more about this defining moment and the significance it has in the lives of so many of our neighbors.”

County parks, Gary J. Arthur, North Laurel and Roger Carter Community Centers, and the Meadowbrook Athletic Complex will be open on Monday. The Harriet Tubman Cultural Center is open as well, but for scheduled programs only. The Kiwanis-Wallas Hall, Belmont Manor and Historic Park, Ellicott City Colored School Restored, Baltimore & Ohio Ellicott City Station Museum, Robinson Nature Center, Firehouse Museum, Patapsco Female Institute and county historic sites will be closed.

The Regional Transportation Agency will operate on a regular weekday schedule; for more information on RTA, call 1-800-270-9553 or visit www.transitrta.com. All parking regulations and fees will be in effect on June 19.

The Howard County Library System will be closed Monday in recognition of Juneteenth, too.