Memorial Day History started to honor Union soldiers who died during the American Civil War. After World War I, Memorial Day expanded to also take into account those men and women who died in the war.

History

Memorial Day is a public holiday set aside in the United States of America on the last Monday in the month of May to commemorate the brave hearts, the military service men and women of the nation. Memorial Day was initially conceived to honor and pay tribute to all those Union soldiers who gave up their lives in the American Civil War (1861-1865). But gradually, it expanded in its significance. And, after World War I, Memorial Day commemorated every one who died in any American War or in any sort of military action in the defense of the nation.

Memorial Day is a day to remember, reflect and honor those who risked their lives to protect the country, to protect America and finally gave up, fighting like fierce lions till the very end. It is these bold and courageous souls that are remembered with pride and joy on Memorial Day. People visit families who have lost a kin in a war or they visit cemeteries and memorials to pay their tributes to the war heroes. Memorial Day is a day for silent prayers and warm remembrance.

But how did a Memorial Day observance start?

There are numerous claimants to the actual origins of the Memorial Day. Many American cities and towns declare to be the actual place of origin of the Memorial Day. These include Georgia, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Columbus, Richmond, Macon, Mississippi etc. But it is difficult to isolate one single unanimous origin to the Memorial Day holiday. It is quite possible that Memorial Day had many separate beginnings at the different towns and cities of America. However, in 1966, Waterloo (New York) was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by the federal government under President Lyndon Johnson.

Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day, as proclaimed by General John Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic in 1868. This Decoration Day was first observed on May 30, 1868. Decoration Day was so called because it was on this day that graves of the fallen heroes were decorated with flowers, wreaths and flags to pay tributes to their dedicated service in defense of their country. But the southern states of America refused to observe a common Memorial Day and continued to observe Confederate Memorial Day separately, with varying dates of observance from state to state.

Now, Decoration Day was first observed in 1868, inspired by local celebrations of the day in the many small towns and cities of America, where it has been taking place for the last three years since the American Civil War. During its first observance, General James Garfield delivered a speech at the Arlington National Cemetery, following which every one who attended the ceremony took part in decorating the graves of the umpteen Union and Confederate soldiers buried there.

New York was the first state to hold an official observance of Memorial Day in 1873. By 1890, Memorial Day got its due recognition and came to be celebrated in all of the northern states in the US. The southern states held their individual Confederate Memorial Day celebrations until World War I, when the significance of Memorial Day finally expanded in meaning to include all war heroes; all those who died fighting in the US military service, instead of remaining confined to just those who died in the Civil War.

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