'Mayteenth' in Tallahassee: Emancipation Proclamation read publicly, 159 years later

On the steps of what is now the Knott House Museum, where the Emancipation Proclamation was first read in the state of Florida, it was read again – 159 years later.

General Edward McCook first read the proclamation on May 20, 1865. The occasion marked the day that the enslaved present learned they were free, two years after President Abraham Lincoln made the declaration.

On Monday, the Mina String Quartet from the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra performed "Lift Every Voice," often referred to as the "Black National Anthem," before the proclamation was read in front of hundreds.

Reginald Ellis, provost and professor at Florida A&M University, gave a keynote speech highlighting the importance of Emancipation Day in Florida.

"We celebrate the emancipation in Florida as this is the day that marked the beginning of our inclusion in the American experience," he said.

Brian Bibeau, portraying Brigadier General Edward McCook, read the Emancipation Proclamation and the crowd applauded at the end of the reenactment.

State Rep. Allison Tant, Leon County Commissioner Rick Minor, Mayor John Dailey, Tallahassee City Commissioners Curtis Richardson and Dianne Williams-Cox, Leon Schools Superintendent Rocky Hanna and school board member Laurie Lawson Cox were among those in attendance.

A free lunch and family-friendly activities followed across the street in Lewis Park.

How Florida does it differently

As previously reported, Emancipation Day, May 20, marks the day in 1865 when the Emancipation Proclamation was first read in Tallahassee. The day is also called "Mayteenth."

Juneteenth commemorates the day in Galveston, Texas in 1866 when the last enslaved people in the U.S. were finally informed that they were free, two and a half years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. President Joe Biden made Juneteenth a federal holiday in 2021.

Despite that, Florida — along with states like California, Hawaii, Pennsylvania and more than two dozen others — does not officially recognize Juneteenth as a state holiday. It is included in the list of state public holidays and some county commissions and city councils in recent years have closed offices for Juneteenth.

This story contains previous reporting by Chris Bridges.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Emancipation Proclamation again read on Knott House Museum steps