Memorial Day

On behalf of Katella’s History Adventures, I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to all our service members, past and present, who have fought to ensure freedom for this country and all people around the world.

Memorial Day began after the Civil War to honor those who died in that horrible conflict. In the beginning, it was known as Remembrance Day, and no one is sure which state it first occurred in, but in 1966, President Johnson declared Waterloo, NY, the birthplace of the day. The first official observance happened on May 30, 1868, when General John Logan issued his General Order #11, and flowers were placed on the graves of Confederate and Union soldiers in Arlington National Cemetery. The first state to officially recognize Remembrance Day was New York in 1873; however, the South refused to recognize it until after World War I. This is because after World War I, the holiday changed from just recognizing the Civil War dead to recognizing all who died in American Wars. To this day, the South still has separate days of recognition for its Civil War dead. Just a side note: it was officially chosen to be celebrated on the last Monday of May in 1971 by Congress with the passage of the National Holiday Act of 1971, so that we could have 3-day Federal holiday weekends. However, the official observance is still May 30^th.

Poppies are the official flower of Memorial Day, thanks to Moina Michael, who wrote a poem referring to them in 1915 and began selling them to her friends and co-workers, with the proceeds helping servicemen in need. This tradition spread to Europe after Madame Guerin had visited the United States and learned of this new custom. She would later approach the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) for help in 1921, and they were the first organization to sell poppies nationally.

Over the years, the traditional ways to observe Memorial Day have fallen by the wayside. We are now more interested in parades and barbecues than truly honoring our military dead. Many cemeteries around the country have graves of servicemen and women who are ignored or neglected. This day is not for honoring all, as some would assume, but specifically for honoring all who served and died in America’s Wars. Our children are not taught the importance of this day in school, but view it as a day off.

However, I am happy to report that we do have some exceptions to this: the 3rd US Infantry places flags on each grave at Arlington National Cemetery, but unfortunately, they must patrol 24 hours a day to ensure those flags stay standing. The Boy and Cub Scouts of St. Louis place flags on graves at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, and Boy and Girl Scouts in Virginia place flags on the Graves of soldiers buried at Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park. I am sure countless other Boy and Girl Scout troops are doing this across the country, but there are not enough of them. 

We must all give of our time to honor our fallen Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors, and Marines on this important day. One way, besides placing flags on our service members’ graves, is to take a moment to observe the National Moment of Remembrance at 3 pm local time on Memorial Day, when Americans voluntarily and informally observe in their own way. Some suggestions include pausing for a moment of silence or listening to Taps. I encourage everyone to do this with their children and grandchildren and to remind them that this day is more than just a day off for a parade or barbecue. It is a day to honor our glorious military dead and to thank them for a job well done because we still live under a Constitution that gives us the opportunity for success every day. None of this would be possible without their service.