Opal Lee, Her Historic Walk and Fort Worth’s National Juneteenth Museum
A Fort Worth Story with National Reach
Juneteenth began in Texas, and one of the people most responsible for its national recognition built her campaign in Fort Worth. Dr. Opal Lee spent decades teaching, organizing and walking for freedom. Her work helped turn Juneteenth into a federal holiday and inspired plans for the National Juneteenth Museum in the city’s Historic Southside.
Fort Worth Crawling tells local history one neighborhood at a time. Lee’s story shows how a determined neighbor can move a national conversation, one step after another.
What Juneteenth Commemorates
On June 19, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger issued General Order No. 3 in Galveston, announcing that enslaved people in Texas were free. The announcement came more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. Black Texans began marking the date the following year, creating a tradition that spread across the country.
Juneteenth celebrates freedom, community and Black achievement while encouraging honest reflection on the long struggle to make freedom real. President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act on June 17, 2021.
Opal Lee’s Fort Worth Roots
Opal Lee was born in Marshall, Texas, in 1926 and moved with her family to Fort Worth. On June 19, 1939, a white mob destroyed the Lee family’s home. She later became an educator and community leader, but she did not allow that violence to define the limits of her work.
Lee led local Juneteenth celebrations, worked on community projects and advocated for national recognition of the holiday. She also helped establish Opal’s Farm, an urban farm that supports food access in Fort Worth.
The Walk for Freedom
In 2016, at age 89, Lee began a symbolic journey from Fort Worth toward Washington, D.C. She walked in stages and gathered support for a petition to make Juneteenth a national holiday. Her annual walks use a 2.5-mile distance to represent the roughly two and a half years between the Emancipation Proclamation and the announcement in Galveston.
The image of Lee walking became a powerful part of the campaign. It made history visible and invited people to join rather than simply watch. In 2024, President Biden awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
The National Juneteenth Museum
The National Juneteenth Museum is planned for the corner of Rosedale Street and Evans Avenue in Fort Worth’s Historic Southside, where Lee operated a local Juneteenth museum beginning in 2005. The project is designed as both a national institution and a neighborhood investment.
The museum has acquired its site, released architectural renderings and selected exhibition designers. Its official timeline currently anticipates the start of construction in 2026. Because large cultural projects change, visitors should not rely on an old opening date. Check https://nationaljuneteenthmuseum.org/ for construction news, programs and events.
Plans call for exhibitions that connect the history of Juneteenth with broader stories of freedom, citizenship and culture. The museum also intends to support education, community gathering and economic development around Evans Avenue.
How to Engage Before the Doors Open
The museum organization already presents talks, celebrations, history-collection projects and other programs. Visitors can follow its calendar, support the capital campaign and learn from the online Juneteenth history resources. Opal’s Walk for Freedom remains an annual tradition, but dates and routes vary, so confirm details through official event pages.
For another side of Fort Worth history, join Fort Worth Crawling’s Cowboy Pub Crawl in the Stockyards. The tour pairs local saloons with stories about the people and industries that shaped the city.
Book the Cowboy Pub Crawl: https://fortworthcrawling.com/stockyards-pub-crawl/