Medford City Hall To Close For Juneteenth Observance

MEDFORD, MA — City Hall will be closed Friday, June 18 to observe Juneteenth. All public safety buildings will remain open.

City services such as applying for a building permit, paying a bill or submitting a non-emergency request for service can all be done online through the city's website.

The holiday, a portmanteau of June 19, is being recognized across the nation for the first time this year. President Joe Biden made it a federal holiday Thursday after a bill passed the U.S. House and Senate this week.

Juneteenth was already a state holiday in Massachusetts following a House bill signed by Gov. Charlie Baker in July 2020, which requires communities to add it as a paid holiday for its municipal employees.

Juneteenth has been celebrated by Black communities for more than 100 years. The holiday dates back to June 1865, when Union soldiers reached Texas, freeing the last remaining slaves held by the Confederacy — a full two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

City Hall was also closed Thursday, June 17 for Bunker Hill Day, which marks the anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolution.