Living history frames Riley Museum s Emancipation Day celebrations
Amanda Sieradzki
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In the early 2000s, the Riley Museum and the Knott House Museum came together to create a community-wide celebration for Florida’s Emancipation Day the day in Tallahassee when enslaved people in Southern states were declared freed.
The annual commemoration takes place on May 20 each year and includes a grave decorating ceremony in honor of John G. Riley’s reverent walks to the cemetery to honor United States Colored Troops soldiers.
Instead of a walk through living history, there will be a drive-thru Living History Festival and Day in the Park on Saturday, May 8, 10 a.m.- noon, at Speed Spencer Stephens Park,1907 Saxon St. Historical reenactors will be engaged in activities of the era and attendees will be able to enjoy the festival from their vehicles.
Poets for Freedom: A Leon County Emancipation Day poetry contest
and last updated 2021-04-30 14:40:03-04
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) â Leon County Government invites citizens to recognize Florida s upcoming Emancipation Day on May 20 by participating in Poets for Freedom, a unique project featuring original poems on the topic of freedom.
The program is organized by the LeRoy Collins Leon County Public Library System and will showcase submissions throughout the month of May. Poets must be aged 18 and older, The deadline for submissions is Friday, May 7.
Florida Emancipation Day marks the first announcement of Abraham Lincolnâs Emancipation Proclamation in Leon County on May 20, 1865.