August 8th, Emancipation Day, has always been celebrated here, although not so much now as it once was. The local Black Baptist church was located on one side of our farm, and they'd start cooking BBQ on the night of the 7th. Blacks would come and go all day on the 8th, eating, drinking, and gambling. Some White folks would always get invited to sample the BBQ. The older Blacks were really into celebrating Emancipation Day, not so much the younger ones. When I was growing up in the 50's and 60's, most Blacks were Republicans because it was the party of Lincoln, who freed the slaves. Funny how times have changed.
