Florida Emancipation Day, celebrated on May 20th each year, marks the day in 1865 when Union General Edward M. McCook announced the Emancipation Proclamation in Tallahassee, effectively ending slavery in Florida. Several counties in Florida celebrate this day.
The speaker for the Celebration is Dr. Christopher Esing, professor at Western Wyoming College. He is a historian of economic history with a specific focus on the development of Florida from the Civil War to World War II. President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, delivered on January 1, 1863, will be presented by Idrissa Presley-Peterson, chairperson of the Presley Learning Center, Inc.