Watch Nights mark Emancipation Proclamation 150th

Tradition began in 1862 as black churches awaited word of Lincoln’s effort to end slavery

By: Associated Press - Texarkana Gazette

Associated Press This 2005 file photo shows the original Emancipation Proclamation on display in the Rotunda of the National Archives in Washington.

WASHINGTON—As New Year’s Day approached 150 years ago, all eyes were on President Abraham Lincoln in expectation of what he warned 100 days earlier would be coming—his final proclamation declaring all slaves in states rebelling against the Union to be “forever free.”...

Published: 12/30/2012