“The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor.” (General… read more >>
Show way quilts have a rich history, as intricate as the fabrics and threads that hold them together. Like so many quilts, show ways are said to have a secret meaning all of their own – messages sewn into the fabric for slaves to escape via the Underground Railroad. Quilts were made of a wide variety of patterns – some with names like “wagon… read more >>
Juneteenth, short for June 19th, is a holiday celebrating the effective end of slavery. On June 19th, 1865 two months after the surrender of General Robert E. Lee at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia, Major General Gordon Granger led Union troops into Galveston, Texas to take control of the state. Granger and his troops were there… read more >>