Historian Reflects on the Freedmen’s Memorial's 150th Anniversary

Freedmen's Memorial, Lincoln Park, Washington, D.C.

This April 11th marked the 150th anniversary of the dedication of the Freedmen's Memorial located in Lincoln Park, just east of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. This statues was funded by former slaves to honor President Abraham Lincoln for breaking the chains of slavery and gave them their freedom. At the dedication in 1876, Frederick Douglass was the keynote speaker and, in attendance, was President Ulysses S. Grant, whose Union forces ensured the defeat of the Confederate States of America and made emancipation possible.

For an excellent article that places the memorial and its dedication ceremony in context, see historian Kevin M. Levin's reflection that appears today on his Civil War Memory blog.