Jan. 12, 2023 Fort Worth firefighters encountered heavy fire conditions.
By Isabella Volmert Source The Dallas Morning News (TNS) Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
A building destroyed in a fire in Fort Worth early Wednesday was previously the site of Opal Lee’s Juneteenth Museum.
Fort Worth fire crews responded to the 1100 block of Evans Avenue about 1:15 a.m., the department said, and found the one-story wood-frame residential building in flames. Two buildings on either side of the structure also caught fire.
After about an hour, the fire was under control in all three locations, the department said.
Fire department spokesman Craig Trojacek confirmed one person was treated for smoke inhalation and said no other injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
The structure was home to the original Juneteenth Museum, which was managed by Opal Lee for 20 years, Trojacek said. The 2019 film Miss Juneteenth was filmed at the location.
Plans for the construction of the new National Juneteenth Museum in Fort Worth were announced in 2021. Lee, the Fort Worth native and civil rights leader, was instrumental in the establishment of Juneteenth as a federal American holiday.
“Thankfully, the development of the new museum meant all of the artifacts were out,” the fire department said on social media.
Originally a Texas holiday, Juneteenth commemorates the day when news of the Emancipation Proclamation reached Galveston on June 19, 1865, two-and-a-half years after it was signed.
Lee advocated for Juneteenth’s national recognition for years, and famously walked more than 1,400 miles to Washington, D.C., to do so. Lee, who turned 96 in October, was The Dallas Morning News’ 2021 Texan of the Year.