On this day in 1876, the Emancipation Monument also know as the Freedmen’s Memorial Monument is dedicated in Washington D.C.’s Lincoln Park. Frederick Douglass (circa 1818-1895) and John Mercer Langston (1825- 1897 ) speak at the inaugural ceremonies; President Ulysses S. Grant and other officials of the federal government also attend. Newspapers report that “nearly all of colored organizations in the city took part” in the procession, which started in the vicinity of 7th and K streets.
