On April 16, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed the District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act. The law ended slavery in Washington, D.C., months before the Emancipation Proclamation. It provided payment to slave owners for freeing enslaved people, reflecting a gradualist approach that some lawmakers favored. About 3,000 enslaved individuals in the district gained their freedom under this act. Residents of D.C. still celebrate Emancipation Day in mid-April to mark the event. The law was an important early step toward nationwide abolition.
