Research Arsenal

Today we celebrate Memorial Day to honor all those who died while in service to their country. Memorial Day's roots go back to Decoration Day, the first of which was observed on May 30, 1868. John Logan, Commander in Chief of the G.A.R. (Grand Army of the Republic) issued General Order No. 11 on May 5, 1868 officially designating Decoration Day on a national scale. Logan stated:
"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, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village and hamlet churchyard in the land.”

On the first Decoration Day, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, and 5,000 participants decorated the graves of the 20,000 Civil War soldiers buried there. Many Northern states held similar commemorative events and reprised the tradition in subsequent years; by 1890 each one had made Decoration Day an official state holiday. Despite this, Southern states, continued to honor the dead on separate days until after World War I.

Following WWI, there was a need to honor fallen American soldiers beyond just the Civil War. The name changed from Decoration Day to Memorial Day. For decades, Memorial Day continued to be observed on May 30th, the date General Logan had selected for the first Decoration Day. But in 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which established Memorial Day as the last Monday in May in order to create a three-day weekend for federal employees. The change went into effect in 1971. The same law also declared Memorial Day a federal holiday.

Be sure to take some time to day to remember and reflect on those who gave the supreme sacrifice so that we might be here today and live free.

Images: Burying the dead at Fredericksburg hospital https://app.researcharsenal.com/imageSingleView/67997
and 1907 Decoration Day card