FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. -- Hundreds of people came out to Festival Park on Saturday. And while the beautiful weather had something to do with that, there was a higher purpose to the visit by all those folks.

• Visitors came to Fayetteville for the Juneteenth Freedom Festival.
• On June 19, 1865, Union soldiers notified black slaves in Texas that they were free at the end of the Civil War.
• Organizers say they plan to make the Juneteenth Freedom Festival a yearly event at Festival Park.

They came for the Juneteenth Freedom Festival. Juneteenth is a combination of June and 19. On June 19, 1865, Union soldiers notified black slaves in Texas that they were free at the end of the Civil War.

Recent historic research has shown that African-Americans took a more dominant role in securing their freedom. Nearly 200,000 black soldiers fought for the U.S. in the Civil War.

Organizers say they plan to make the Juneteenth Freedom Festival a yearly event at Festival Park.