Harriet Tubman National Historical Park

Harriet Tubman National Historical Park is partnering with the NYS Equal Rights Heritage Center and City of Auburn, NY, to celebrate Harriet Tubman Day: Towards a More Perfect Union on March 10, 2026.   

Officially proclaimed as a national holiday in 1990, Harriet Tubman Day honors the heroic life and legacy of Harriet Tubman on the date of her passing on March 10, 1913, in Auburn, New York.  Special commemorative activities will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the historic Thompson Memorial A.M.E. Zion Church, which was the site of Tubman’s 1913 funeral, and the Parsonage building next door, which serves as the Park’s visitor center.   

Join us for a day of special guest speakers, the city’s official Proclamation Ceremony and honoring of Tubman’s familial descendants, ranger programs, educational displays, family-friendly arts & crafts, and an evening community program at the Equal Rights Heritage Center.  All activities are free and open to the public.  

For the full event schedule and additional details, please visit: https://www.nps.gov/hart/planyourvisit/special-events.htm  

American Sign Language interpretation is made possible through a National Park Foundation grant and Interpretek.   

As part of the Harriet Tubman Day celebration, the official proclamation ceremony will be held at 12 p.m. (noon) in the Thompson Memorial A.M.E. Zion Church (47 Parker Street, Auburn, NY). Seating is limited to 49 individuals.  

Auburn City Mayor James Giannettino, Jr. will present the “Harriet Tubman Day Proclamation” to the familial descendants of Harriet Tubman; followed by remarks by Rev. Paris V. Price of the Harriet Tubman A.M.E. Zion Church and Ahna Wilson, Superintendent of Harriet Tubman NHP; and musical selections by Auburn City Councilwoman, Dr. Rhoda Overstreet-Wilson. 

For the Harriet Tubman Day 2026 event schedule and additional details, please visit: https://www.nps.gov/hart/planyourvisit/special-events.htm  

Harriet Tubman Day 2026 will conclude with a special evening community program from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., hosted in partnership with the nearby NYS Equal Rights Heritage Center, which is located at 25 South Street, Auburn, NY.  Parking is free after 5 p.m. in the Downtown Parking Garage at 1 Lincoln Street. 

The evening's keynote speaker is Dr. Tanisha M. Jackson, African American Studies Professor at Syracuse University and Executive Director of the Community Folk Art Center.  

"Freedom Is a Practice: Harriet Tubman, Black Women’s Cultural Work, and the Making of a More Perfect Union”   Harriet Tubman’s life reminds us that freedom is not a static ideal—it is an ongoing practice.  In this lecture, Dr. Tanisha Jackson places Tubman’s legacy in conversation with contemporary Black women artists who build creative spaces rooted in wellness, mutual care, and social transformation.  Through historical reflection and contemporary case studies, this talk explores how Black women’s cultural work functions as a form of civic leadership and grassroots democracy.  By examining art-making as liberation work, we consider how communities continue Tubman’s charge to demand justice and expand the meaning of citizenship.  

There will also be activity tables staffed by Harriet Tubman NHP rangers with make-and-take Harriet Tubman Day buttons; and the Harriet Tubman Boosters community group with a fun photo station.    

American Sign Language interpretation is made possible through a National Park Foundation grant and Interpretek. 

For the Harriet Tubman Day 2026 event schedule and additional details, please visit: https://www.nps.gov/hart/planyourvisit/special-events.htm