MANSFIELD — When Loretta Hilliard was preparing a presentation on Black history, she went where most local historians go — to the Sherman Room at the Mansfield Richland County Public Library.
When she got there, she found there wasn’t a single book on the history of the local African American community. So, she wrote one.
That was nearly 20 years ago, but Hilliard, a trustee on the Richland County Museum board, is still working to tell those stories.
Hilliard was one of several Black authors selling signed copies of their work during Saturday’s Juneteenth celebration in downtown Mansfield. Her book, “A History of Notable African-Americans in Richland County, Ohio,” is now available at most MRCPL branches.
“One of the gentlemen that was over at the Sherman Room, he said it was the most checked out book in February,” Hilliard said. “The kids are writing their reports on Black history and they check out this book.”
Saturday’s Juneteenth festival commemorated a pivotal moment in history — when Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas and informed residents that slavery would no longer be tolerated under federal decree. The day was June 19, 1865. It was the last day the last of the nation’s African American slaves finally became free.
For Hilliard, it’s a day of mixed emotions.
“They were held in slavery two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed and that makes me sad. But I like the celebration and remembrance because we’re supposed to remember,” she said.
Saturday’s event featured plenty of celebration. The day began with a parade and continued with a festival in Central Park, where attendees enjoyed live music and performances, pop-up shops and food truck fare.
Mansfield native Jaylon Scott returned home to emcee, entertaining a crowd of hundreds with attendees of all ages.
“It makes me very emotional just to see people together, dwelling together and just loving each other,” he said.
He wasn’t the only one to come home for the event. Muriel Brooks lives in Fayetteville, North Carolina, but said Mansfield is still home.
Brooks was also part of a book signing event facilitated by the Mansfield Richland County Public Library. Her children’s book, Renell of Oakenwaldt Avenue, is based largely on her own experiences growing up in Mansfield.
“It means a lot that we can come together and celebrate our heritage,” she said.
Brooks and many others described the holiday as a time for community.
“It’s a great time to celebrate, a time to get together and see folks that we haven’t seen and let the kids know what Juneteenth is all about,” said Deanna West-Torrence, CEO of the North End Community Improvement Collaborative. “It’s been a lot of fun. Shoutout to Enisia Lee and her team, they did a fabulous job.”
Lee, a school liaison at Mansfield City Schools and founder of Princess Endowment, led the committee that organized the event for the second year in a row.
Leonard Dillon, president of the Mansfield NAACP, said he’s glad to see Juneteenth observances return to the city. Dillon was part a committee that organized public Juneteenth Celebrations in the 1990s through the early 2010s.
“I’m elated to see all these people coming together,” he said. “Even in 2023, we’re not totally free. We’re still working on it, but there are ways we can come together.”
Dillon said that work begins with community members of different racial backgrounds getting to know each other, advocating for laws that benefit all communities and fighting for civil rights.
Yolanda Allen encouraged those in attendance to continue fighting for a better world through voting and education.
“Demand that the respective school systems educate our children,” she told the crowd during a brief presentation. “A lot of our history is lost or stolen.
“Mansfield has lost some industry, but we have not lost our people and our spirit. Our spirit must be revived to bring the best of ourselves to the forefront,” she continued. “We need to band together. Where there is unity, there is strength.”
