Swampscott To Host Juneteenth Celebration Thursday

SWAMPSCOTT, MA — Swampscott will hold its Juneteenth celebration on Thursday at the Town Hall Lawn.

This year's event will begin at 1 p.m. with a flag-raising. There will also be local food, live music and yard games.

The town of Swampscott and Department of Equity, Inclusion and Justice Critical Partner Tamy Fee-Meneide will present the event.

"Help us honor and celebrate the American history of the end of slavery," organizers said. "Everyone of all ages is welcome."

Juneteenth celebrates the date of June 19, 1865, when the slaves of Galveston, Texas learned of the Union's Civil War victory and their freedom. That date came two years after President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)