Finally!

On this day in 1866 President Andrew Johnson formally declared the Civil War over. Now, that may seem a bit late since fighting had stopped months earlier.

Lee surrendered in Virginia April 9, 1865, and Johnston surrendered in North Carolina April 26, 1865. The Confederate naval force was slow to respond, but surrendered November 4, 1865, in Liverpool, England.

Communication took longer then, so I guess it's understandable. My state of Texas was somewhat reluctant to join the Confederacy, but did. Texas participation was largely as a supplier of troops and supplies and was also a victim of that slow communication. Of course, slaves were actually freed with the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation in January of 1863. However, the Texas slaves learned they were free the day Union soldiers sailed into Galveston, Texas, and announced the end of the war. That was June 19, 1865, known and still celebrated in Texas as Junteenth.

As slow as Texas was to learn of the war's end, it still beat President Johnson's declaration by more than a year!

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