Black Georgetown Foundation: DC Emancipation Day - Learning & Service

Join us for DC Emancipation Day: Remembrance and Service Day on April 11 at the Mt Zion – Female Union Band Society Cemeteries.

Before Juneteenth, there was DC Emancipation Day.

On April 16, 1862, slavery was abolished in the District of Columbia. More than 3,100 enslaved individuals were freed—eight months before the Emancipation Proclamation. At the same time, DC became the only part of the United States where enslavers were financially compensated, a reality that remains part of this history.

The Mt Zion Cemetery (dating back to 1808) and the Female Union Band Society Cemetery (dating back to 1842) are the oldest remaining intact Black cemeteries in Washington, DC, where enslaved, freed, and free Black individuals are buried.

The day will begin at 10:00 AM with a libation ceremony led by Nana Malaya Rucker, followed by a public reading of names from the 1862 DC Compensated Emancipation records—bringing those individuals into present-day recognition.

We will also share selected words from Bishop Daniel Payne, who delivered a sermon at Ebenezer AME Church in Georgetown on April 13, 1862, and met with President Abraham Lincoln the following day as the city stood on the brink of emancipation.

Following the program, we will move into volunteer service activities focused on spring cleaning and caring for the cemeteries. No experience necessary.

This is a free event and ALL are welcome.

Feel free to bring your garden equipment, dress in comfortable clothes, wear closed-toe shoes, and join us in caring for the grounds. Let this be a day to learn more about American history—right here in Georgetown.

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