The Altadena Historical Society, in collaboration with the local community, will host a Juneteenth Celebration Luncheon on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, from noon to 1:30 p.m. at Farnsworth Park, William D. Davis Memorial Building, 568 Mount Curve Avenue, Altadena, according to a press release.
The annual event aims to honor the life and legacy of Ellen Garrison Clark, a 19th-century civil rights activist who spent her final years in the Altadena/Pasadena area, teaching African Americans to read and write. Clark died on Dec. 21, 1892, and was laid to rest at the Altadena Mountain View Cemetery without a grave marker.
As part of the celebration, the Altadena Historical Society will award two $1,000 scholarships to graduating seniors from John Muir High School through the Ellen Garrison Clark Fund, which was established by the Society. They also placed a grave marker where Clark was buried in Mountain View Cemetery.
The program will feature a screening of “Ellen Garrison: Scenes from an Activist’s Life,” a short documentary by Five Sisters Productions, and a display of historical quilts made by Vicki Stuckey.
Juneteenth, officially known as Juneteenth National Independence Day, commemorates the emancipation of enslaved African Americans. Originating in Galveston, Texas, it has been celebrated annually on June 19 in various parts of the United States since 1865.
Last year, the Altadena Historical Society celebrated Juneteenth by honoring the hidden histories of Altadena and awarding two scholarships to local students. In September 2023, the Society and the San Gabriel Questors laid two more headstones on the direct descendants of slaves Harvey and Susanne Clark at Mountain View Cemetery.
The event was made possible by contributions to the Ellen Garrison Clark Fund and the support of Mountain View Cemetery and Altadena Historical Society member Timothy Jones of Collen, Texas.
Tickets for the Juneteenth Celebration Luncheon are available for purchase on the Altadena Historical Society’s website, priced at $25 pre-event and $30 at the door.
Get our daily Pasadena newspaper in your email box. Free.
Get all the latest Pasadena news, more than 10 fresh stories daily, 7 days a week at 7 a.m.
