African American Heritage

Juneteenth and Beyond

Journey through African American culture and heritage in Texas — an experience that includes hardships and triumphs, valor and determination, influence and change.

Pictured: The Doris Miller Memorial in Waco
Credit: Sheila Scarborough

African American Heritage at Your Fingertips

Scroll through the slider below to learn more about African American history and heritage in the State of Texas through our updated cultural guide, mobile tour, and the Buffalo Soldiers Heritage Trail

Travel Guide: African Americans in Texas

Discover meaningful historic sites and stories across the state with this updated cultural travel guide.

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Buffalo Soldiers Heritage Trail

This trail is a statewide initiative that celebrates their significant role in Texas history.

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Mobile Tour: African Americans in Texas

Learn how this rich, vibrant community played a vital role shaping the Lone Star state.

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Brought to Texas

The story of the African American presence in Texas history follows the familiar script written for every other southern state in the nation: enslavement brought most African Americans to the region. By the mid-1800s, enslavement played an important role in Texas' economic development and, in fact, enslaved African Americans comprised 30 percent of the state's population by 1860. But freedom for the African American in Texas finally arrived via news from Galveston on June 19, 1865, a day now nationally recognized as Juneteenth.

"People of Quakertown." Quakertown was a freedmen's colony in Denton.
Credit: Portal to Texas History, UNT

Difficult Days Ahead

After secession and during reconstruction, federal intervention was required once again to ensure the protection of civil rights in Texas, ushering in an era that saw African Americans helping the Texas economy recover from the Civil War, serving in the state legislature, and helping to guide the state toward a freer, more democratic society.

Their success was short-lived, however, as segregation established a grip on the state that wouldn't be released for another 60 years. Despite what seemed like impossible odds during this period, African Americans in Texas were able to build communities and businesses, allowing economies and cultures to thrive.

"Absolute Equity," a recently completed mural in Galveston commemorating Juneteenth.
Credit: 2C2K Photography

African Americans in Texas Today

Explore the video playlist

Uncovering the Black Cowboy Legacy with Larry Callies When most people think of cowboys, they rarely envision the rich, vibrant history of African American… Details
Rosenwald Schools In 1917, the Rosenwald Fund, established by Sears, Roebuck and Company CEO Julius Rosenwald, provided matching… Details
Buffalo Soldiers: The Buffalo Warriors Buffalo Soldiers, a name the Plains Indians gave to the African American cavalry regiments serving the… Details
Civil Rights: Lest We Forget The Struggle Segregation, the norm in Texas from the end of the Civil War to 1965, ultimately could… Details

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