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Oct 17, 2024 · Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, began during the American Civil War when citizens placed flowers on the graves of those who had been killed in battle. After World War I, it came to be observed in honour of those who had died in all U.S. wars, and its name changed to Memorial Day.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
- Memorial Day is celebrated in the United States on the last Monday in May. In 2021 Memorial Day is on May 31.
- Memorial Day traditions include the laying of a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington National Cemetery; religious services, parades, and...
- Whether election day should be made a national holiday like Memorial Day is debated. Some say a holiday would increase voter turnout by enabling mo...
The first national observance of Memorial Day occurred on May 30, 1868. [6] Then known as Decoration Day and observed on May 30, the holiday was proclaimed by Commander in Chief John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic to honor the Union soldiers who had died in the American Civil War. [7]
May 25, 2024 · Whatever its inception, historians agree that the first widely held commemoration was in 1868, when Gen. John A. Logan, the commander in chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization...
- Livia Albeck-Ripka
May 25, 2016 · The federal government weighed in on the debate 50 years ago when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed a May 26, 1966, proclamation that “officially recognized that the patriotic tradition of...
- 3 min
- The Birthplace of Memorial Day and Early Observances
- Decoration Day
- History of Memorial Day
- Memorial Day Traditions and Rituals
The Civil War, which ended in the spring of 1865, claimed more lives than any conflict in U.S. history and required the establishment of the country’s first national cemeteries. By the late 1860s, Americans in various towns and cities had begun holding springtime tributes to these countless fallen soldiers, decorating their graves with flowers and ...
On May 5, 1868, General John A. Logan, leader of an organization for Northern Civil War veterans, called for a nationwide day of remembrance later that month. “The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, ...
Memorial Day, as Decoration Day gradually came to be known, originally honored only those lost while fighting in the Civil War. But during World War I the United States found itself embroiled in another major conflict, and the holiday evolved to commemorate American military personnel who died in all wars, including World War II, The Vietnam War, T...
Cities and towns across the United States host Memorial Day parades each year, often incorporating military personnel and members of veterans’ organizations. Some of the largest parades take place in Chicago, New York and Washington, D.C. Americans also observe Memorial Day by visiting cemeteries and memorials. Some people wear a red poppy in remem...
May 26, 2023 · Some say the first Memorial Day took place on May 1, 1865, when a large group of recently freed African Americans held a parade in Charleston, South Carolina, to honor fallen Union soldiers...
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May 29, 2023 · Memorial Day, a day when America honours its war dead, is observed on the last Monday in May each year. In 2023 it will be commemorated on 29 May. Here, historian Peter Caddick-Adams explores the origins of this national holiday, which date back to 1868…
