Juneteenth, Gordon Granger, and Chickamauga
Fort Oglethorpe, GA: On Sunday June 19, at 2 pm, Chickamauga and Chattanooga
National Military Park will present a special ranger-led hike to look at General Gordon
Granger and his roles in both the Battle of Chickamauga and Juneteenth. This program
will start at the Chickamauga Battlefield Visitor Center, then caravan to Snodgrass Hill
and hike just under a mile to the program location This program will last
approximately 1 hour. Please wear comfortable shoes, bring a bottle of water, and
dress for the weather.
On June 19, 1865, General Order No. 3 was issued by US General Gordon Granger upon
his arrival in Galveston, Texas, proclaiming freedom for the enslaved people in Texas,
many of whom were unaware of the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation in
1863. Granger became celebrated among the formerly enslaved as the messenger of
freedom in Texas. From then on, they would remember him, as well as celebrate the
end of the institution of slavery on June 19, or, as it came to be known, “Juneteenth.”
However, prior to his time in Texas, he was one of the heroes of Chickamauga, where
his timely arrival on the battlefield, during the critical stand of the US army on
Horseshoe Ridge and Snodgrass Hill, helped delay Confederate attacks and their
ultimate victory.
For more information about programs at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National
Military Park, contact the Chickamauga Battlefield Visitor Center at 706-866-9241, the
Lookout Mountain Battlefield Visitor Center at 423-821-7786, or visit the park website
at www.nps.gov/chch.
www.nps.gov
Release Date: June 3, 2022
Contact: Kim Coons, kim_coons@nps.gov, 706-866-9241 x 139

Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park News
Release
Public Information Officer
3370 LaFayette Road
Fort Oglethorpe, GA
30742
706-866-9241×139 –
phone
www.nps.gov/chch
National Park Service
U.S. Department of the Interior
About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care
for America’s 423 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help
preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at
www.nps.gov.