Juneteenth is the national holiday, but Tennessee also celebrates on its Emancipation Day

Juneteenth is the federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. But in Tennessee, many celebrate with cookouts, parades and festivals on a second day.

Enslaved people in Tennessee were freed prior to June 19, 1865, the first Juneteenth.

"Historically we always celebrated the Eighth of August," said William Isom, founder of Black in Appalachia. "Andrew Johnson manumitted his own enslaved people (in 1863), prior to what we observe as Juneteenth."

Isom said it's important to celebrate and hold onto the traditions of Juneteenth and Eighth of August. 

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"Juneteenth is the great unifying day we all celebrate the hope for freedom," he said. "We needed a unifying day. It's also nice to have our local day, too, but I think what is important is that both of these days are ours and we get to determine how we observe them. That's the special part about it."

What is Juneteenth?

Juneteenth is when Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger issued the order that freed more than 250,000 enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas.

Also known as Emancipation Day or Freedom Day, it commemorates when all Black people in the South became free.

President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation abolished slavery on Jan. 1, 1863. But the news — that slavery would no longer be tolerated and all enslaved would be free and hired as laborers if they chose to stay on their plantations — didn't spread immediately.

President Joe Biden signed legislation recognizing June 19 as the date marking the end of slavery in the United States, and it became a federal holiday in 2021.

What's different about emancipation in Tennessee?

As Union soldiers took control of areas, they would share the Emancipation Proclamation, so many states celebrate emancipation on different days.

Andrew Johnson, Military Governor of Tennessee and the 17th U.S. president, freed his enslaved people, including his illegitimate children, on Aug. 8, 1863.

The date became known as Emancipation Day in Tennessee. At least seven states and 55 communities celebrate the Eighth of August, including Tennessee, Kentucky and Missouri.

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"The Eighth of August is our own homegrown celebration with roots right here on this soil," Isom said.

Isom dedicates his efforts through Black in Appalachia to preserving the region's Black history, including producing documentaries on emancipation in East Tennessee.

This reporter is co-host of the Black in Appalachia podcast, an initiative by nonprofits Black in Appalachia and East Tennessee PBS.

In 2007, Gov. Phil Bredesen signed a bill acknowledging Aug. 8 as Emancipation Day in Tennessee.

Why the Eighth of August?

There is no signed document of emancipation on Aug. 8, but newspaper clippings and Isom credit Andrew Johnson's former slave Sam Johnson for cementing the importance of the day across the region.

An 1871 article in the Knoxville Chronicle, provided by the National Park Service,  documented Sam Johnson as the "officer of the day" at an Aug. 8 event in Greeneville, Tennessee. The emancipation celebration included a parade, brass band and a march. Andrew Johnson attended and spoke at the event.

Sam Johnson's efforts to designate Eighth of August also were credited in a Knoxville Journal and Tribune article from Aug. 8, 1921:

"In most states January 1 is observed as Emancipation Day, but in Tennessee and a few other states, August 8 has been designated as the date for emancipation day exercises. This custom originated because negroes owned by Andrew Johnson, at Greeneville, were set free on August 8, and Sam Johnson, one of the former slaves of Andrew Johnson, worked for a long time and was successful in having August 8 set aside for Emancipation Day observed in this section."

Thanks to Sam Johnson's efforts, the celebrations spread to other states like Alabama, Kentucky, Arkansas and Mississippi. The tradition also spread to Knoxville along with Sam Johnson's descendants.

Juneteenth and Eighth of August hold similar value, tradition

Renee Kesler, president of The Beck Cultural Exchange Center in Knoxville, told Knox News that communities from all over recognize Eighth of August because freed Black people migrated after learning of their newfound freedom.

"When you hear you have been freed, you go free," she said. "You spread out and go different places, and when you end up in these bordering states as a free person you take the culture and traditions with you."

Acclaimed artists like Louis Armstrong and Tiny Bradshaw's band played at Knoxville Eighth of August celebrations in the late 1930s.

Traditions and celebrations for Juneteenth and Eighth of August have included picnics, parades, dances and even pageants.

"There have been some changes throughout history that we don't see as much anymore like political stumping, where politicians of the day would give political speeches," Isom said. "Black folks used to really play baseball during these celebrations as well; from my research, that was a huge thing in this region."

Kesler said the national celebration of Juneteenth forces America to face the history of slavery while giving opportunity for education around the significance of emancipation history across the country.

"No matter what date you recognize, the news of freedom was important to everyone in this country whenever it came," she said. "When we learn about Juneteenth history we begin to look at all of the areas and places where injustice took place and we begin to talk about emancipation and what it looked like for enslaved Black people everywhere.

"The biggest thing we can do is remember the total history of emancipation where people were waiting for freedom to come."

Angela Dennis covers issues at the intersection of race and equity through both contemporary and historical lenses.
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Emancipation celebrated on Juneteenth and Eighth August in Tennessee