On Sept. 13, 1858, John Price, a runaway slave, was arrested in Oberlin under the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 and taken to Wellington to await a train and avoid a conflict with Oberlin's abolitionist community.

When word was received in Oberlin of Price's abduction, Oberlin students, professors, and residents, black and white, rushed to Wellington where they were joined by Wellington abolitionists in rescuing Price, bringing him back to Oberlin, and sending him to his freedom in Canada. Historians, including the author Nat Brandt, credit this action as a major reason for the start of the Civil War.

"Celebrating the 150th Anniversary of the Oberlin-Wellington Rescue" is the theme for this year's two-day Oberlin Juneteenth Celebration which begins on Friday, June 13 at 11:00 a.m. when a trolley will pull up to the corner of Main and College streets for a tour of Oberlin-Wellington Rescuers home sites.

The tour will be limited to 25 people.

The tour will followed by a community reception at noon at the Rust United Methodist Church, 128 Groveland St., celebrating Juneteenth, the Oberlin-Wellington Rescue and honoring any descendants/relatives of the rescuers in attendance. At 3 p.m. there will be a tour of the historic Westwood Cemetery, which will highlight gravesites of rescuers buried there.

The cemetery tour will be followed at 4 p.m. by the Juneteenth Community Picnic at the Spring Street Park. The annual Maafa Memorial Service (Slave Memorial Service) will be held at Westwood Cemetery that evening at 6:30 p.m.

The speaker will be Reverend Cynthia Heilman, pastor, Oberlin Unitarian Universalist Fellowship with music by Glenn Gall. A Juneteenth Concert on Tappan Square sponsored by the Oberlin Area Chamber of Commerce will feature the E. T. King band and will begin at 7 p.m.

Spades, bid whist, dominoes, and board games, sponsored by the city of Oberlin Recreation Department, beginning at 7:30 p.m. at the Oberlin Inn will end the evening activities.

The Juneteenth Festival begins on Tappan Square on Saturday, June 14 at 10 a.m. with the Ancestral Libation, a reading of The Emancipation Proclamation, and other opening ceremonies. There will be activities on and off the square throughout the day.

The Juneteenth Essay Contest winners will be announced at 11 a.m. The contest is open to all middle school students in Oberlin and Wellington.

Participants in the essay contest will be asked to write a letter to the editor supporting or opposing John Price's rescue and the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850. The first place winner receives $100 and the second place prize is $50.

The Juneteenth Pageantry Parade, "Travelin' The Trails of Time," sponsored by the John Mercer Langston Institute, will take place at noon.

At 1 p.m. there will be a performance by Children Taking Authority For Christ, the mime team at Oberlin's Christ Temple Apostolic Church.

Couples will reaffirm their marriage vows with the Broom Jumping Ceremony at 2 p.m. During the period enslavement, couples were not allowed a traditional marriage ceremony; jumping the broom was one of honoring their commitment to each other.

At 3 p.m., the winner of the Beans and Greens contests will be announced. Contestants may enter in either or both categories. Winners in both categories will receive $100.

Throughout the day there will be other events, historical bus tours, music on the bandstand, contests, readings, and bicycle drawings. There will be a variety of booths and displays on Tappan Square featuring food, crafts, items for sale, community organizations, and helpful information.

Mt. Zion Temple Health Ministry's booth will feature Augustin Jackson, fitness trainer, from Cleveland.

At 4:30 p.m., The Great Brad, a magician, will be featured in the Children's Place, the area on Tappan Square for children's activities which will be open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

"Like 1858, this is a time of great change in our nation, and Juneteenth is a good way for all of us to come together," said Linda Isabel, chair of Juneteenth Oberlin.

Juneteenth marks the final enactment of the Emancipation Proclamation on June 19, 1865 in Texas. On that date slavery came to an official end in the United States. Juneteenth is celebrated in communities throughout the country.

For more information visit the website at juneteenthoberlin.com or call 440-935-0201.