CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) RESOURCE CENTER Read More
Add To Favorites

Juneteenth celebration remembers the service of war veterans of color

Tribune-Democrat - 6/19/2022

Jun. 19—JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — Juneteenth celebrations continued Saturday in the City of Johnstown with a parade and salute to war veterans of color.

U.S. Army Maj. Bruce Jordan, of Johnstown, delivered a Juneteenth speech that moved listeners at Johnstown'sCentral Park while also teaching them things they may not have known about the service of Black soldiers.

He directed the crowd's attention to a three-story building behind him at the corner of Locust Street and Gazebo Place.

The building, with relief sculptures of cannons and rifles on its exterior, was a meeting place built by the local chapter of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of Union Civil War veterans.

Johnstown's post, The Emmory Fisher Post no. 30, was named after Emmory Fisher.

"He was a second lieutenant from Company D, United States Colored Troops," Jordan said. "He was killed in 1864 in Petersburg, Va. He was a black man, and he was also a Johnstown resident, and that building is named after him."

The listeners cheered, many unaware of that history.

Names of dozens more Black war heroes from Johnstown were read aloud. Photos of the veterans were planted along the park's walks. There were more than 80 veterans represented from the Civil War through World War II.

Jordan said Black veterans including himself stand on the shoulders of those from the past, dating all the way back to the Civil War.

Although the Emancipation Proclamation was issued in 1863, it hadn't been fully recognized until 1865, after the war had been settled, he noted.

"We still had work to do," he said.

The national holiday of Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when news of the Emancipation Proclamation and the freedom it provided reached all ears of enslaved Black Americans.

"Texas was a territory that did not instantly recognize the Treaty at Appomattox on April 9, 1865," Jordan said. "So they remained enslaved until General Gordon Granger arrived two months later, June 19, 1865. That's the reason why we celebrate this day."

After Jordan's speech, Johnstown's Juneteenth celebration organizers offered certificates to war veterans in attendance. Vietnam War veteran Herman Fisher, born and raised in Johnstown, was in town visiting family for the weekend.

"This is a great festival they put on here for people of Johnstown to show how many people of color served the nation," he said.

The festivities on Saturday included a parade that ran through downtown.

Chardonnay Allen and her 2-year-old cousin, Javier Smith marched with Christ Centered Community Church.

"It's a good event," she said. "I was happy to be part of it and off work today."

With a cool breeze rushing through Central Park, vendors served food to raise funds for churches and local businesses.

Dayzhan Barrett, 21, and Kaleya Smothers, 20, danced for a few moments as a brass band performed in the park.

"My aunt is a vendor here so we came to support her, but we didn't know there was a festival going on," he said. "We just saw the parade and everything. I know people who would have loved to be vendors, represent Johnstown's youth, and contribute to the event."

The short parade sparked Smothers' interest.

Smothers, a camp counselor at the Greater Johnstown YMCA, said she'd love to have children from her program join next year.

___

(c)2022 The Tribune-Democrat (Johnstown, Pa.)

Visit The Tribune-Democrat (Johnstown, Pa.) at www.tribune-democrat.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.