Join us at Jamestown Settlement for thought-provoking history and performances exploring the precarious nature of freedom from 17th-century Jamestown to Juneteenth.

Juneteenth's roots are in Galveston, Texas, where in June of 1865 the Emancipation Proclamation was finally shared with some of last enslaved people to hear they had been freed. However, the Proclamation’s first reading in a Southern state was on the Virginia Peninsula, in the city of Hampton in 1863. In the preceding centuries, enslaved people sought freedom through the courts, military service, and other forms of self-emancipation.

"Prelude to Juneteenth" reflects on this history, exploring the strategy and complications, and the joys and challenges of ending chattel slavery on the Virginia Peninsula with dramatic readings highlighting stories from the 17th century through the American Civil War.

Juneteenth at Jamestown Settlement

Juneteenth celebrates liberation from a system of slavery with origins in Jamestown, Virginia – as the place where the first recorded Africans in 1619 were brought after landing at Old Point Comfort and where the first slave laws enacted in the mid-17th century impacted the lives and status of Africans and their descendants.

Daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., museum guests can explore African and African American experiences in 17th-century Virginia through expansive gallery exhibits, dramatic films and engaging interactives that share the story of Virginia Indian, English and West Central African cultures.

Using period artifacts and innovative technology, exhibits share historical accounts of the first documented Africans taken from their homeland in Ndongo (Angola) in 1619 to life in the Virginia colony and the evolution of a new African American culture. The “From Africa to Virginia” multimedia presentation chronicles African encounters with Europeans, impact on African culture and the development of the transatlantic slave trade.

The documentary film, “1607: A Nation Takes Root,” is shown every 30 minutes in Presentation Hall. The film traces the evolution of the Virginia Company that sponsored the Jamestown colony, examines the relationship between the English colonists and Powhatan Indians, and chronicles the arrival of the first recorded Africans in 1619 – including the story of Angelo, one of the first African women named in Jamestown’s historical record.

Juneteenth Community Events

Learn more about the Juneteenth Community Consortium, an association of organizations in the Greater Williamsburg Area with a common goal to educate, commemorate and celebrate the end of slavery in America, and explore a full calendar of Juneteenth events.

About Jamestown Settlement

Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily (except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s days), Jamestown Settlement is located on State Route 31 just southwest of Williamsburg. The museum features expansive exhibition galleries and films that connect visitors with the lives of the Powhatan, English and West Central African cultures that converged at 17th-century Jamestown. Outdoor living-history areas feature historical interpretation in re-creations of Paspahegh Town, 1607 English ships and a colonial fort.

Admission tickets can be purchased online or in person. Plan your visit today or call (757) 253-4838 for more information.

Explore other activities and events happening throughout the year.