Juneteenth Lecture and Celebration with Historian Christopher Daley

Presented by York Public Library and York Diversity Forum.

Join York Public Library and York Diversity Forum for a special Juneteenth event! We welcome Christopher Daley, M.A., Author and Historian, for a talk on, "The History of Emancipation and Juneteenth," and we will then share in some delicious Jamaican fare.

The History of Emancipation & Juneteenth is a 90-minute slide presentation which begins with a short history of the Abolitionist movement from the 1830s through the Civil War. Then the discussion will turn to all the slavery connected causes of the Civil War and the growing hue and cry for the end of slavery. Additionally, the election of Abraham Lincoln will be examined spotlighting his views on slavery and African Americans. Through the course of the talk, a revealing view on how his ideas and opinions evolved over time will be shared.

The second part of the presentation will look at some of the events that led up to The Emancipation Proclamation such as Freemont’s Emancipation, Hunter’s Emancipation, and the General Benjamin Butler’s orders on “Contraband of War.” Then, it will consider the Emancipation Proclamation itself; the timing of it, the politics of it and who was actually freed by it.

The third part of the presentation will focus on the gradual emancipation of slaves by Federal Troops as they conquered the different Confederate states, the end of the war and the movement of troops into Texas. This will include the famous issuing of General Order No. 3 on June 19th, 1865 at Galveston Texas and how the news spread through Texas and the reaction of the slaves to tidings of freedom!

The final part of the talk will showcase how Juneteenth went from a local Galveston celebration to a national holiday.

Christopher Daley has been speaking all over New England for the past 30 years and virtually via Zoom throughout the United States for the past two years on historical topics of interest; at libraries, historical societies, schools and all sorts of clubs and organizations! He holds a B.A. and an M.A. from Bridgewater State University in Political Science and History.  He was formerly the President of the Pembroke Historical Society and Chairman of the Pembroke Historical Commission. He was also a docent at the John Alden House Historic Site as well as Coordinator of Educational Outreach. Additionally, this past June, Chris retired from his position as history teacher in the Silver Lake Regional School System in Kingston, Massachusetts after teaching for 25 years. 

Chris has written several articles on varied historical topics for local publications and has written his first book entitled "Murder and Mayhem in Boston: Historic Crimes in the Hub.” Chris has also served as historical consultant on the Sacco-Vanzetti Case for the Travel Channel's program "Time Traveling with Brian Unger."  He also appeared in two episodes of the Travel Channel's "Kindred Spirits" in the capacity of historian on shows about the Lizzie Borden Case.

Chris' wife Cathy is his fellow researcher and travels along as Daley's History Professional Photographer.  Christopher and his wife reside in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.