Memorial Day

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day,
is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service.
There are many stories as to its actual beginnings,
with over 24 cities and towns laying
claim to being the birthplace of Memorial Day.

There is also evidence that organized women's groups in the South
were decorating graves before the end of the Civil War:
a hymn published in 1867,
"Kneel Where Our Loves are Sleeping"
by Nella L. Sweet carried the dedication "To The Ladies of the South
who are Decorating the Graves of the Confederate Dead"

Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day
by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966,
it's difficult to prove conclusively the origins of the day.
It is more likely that it had many separate beginnings;
each of those towns and every planned or spontaneous gathering of
people to honor the war dead in the 1860's tapped into the general
human need to honor our dead, each contributed honorably to
the growing movement that culminated in Gen Logan giving
his official proclamation in 1868.
It is not important who was the very first,
what is important is that Memorial Day was established.
Memorial Day is not about division. It is about reconciliation;
it is about coming together to honor those who gave their all.

Memorial Day was officially proclaimed
on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan,
national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic,
in his General Order No. 11, and was first observed on 30 May 1868,
when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate
soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery.

The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873.
By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states.
The South refused to acknowledge the day,
honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I
(when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died
fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war).
It is now celebrated in almost every State on the last Monday in May
(passed by Congress with the National Holiday Act of 1971
(P.L. 90 - 363) to ensure a 3-day weekend for Federal holidays),
though several southern states have an additional separate day
for honoring the Confederate war dead:
January 19 in Texas,
April 26 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi;
May 10 in South Carolina; and
June 3 (Jefferson Davis' birthday) in Louisiana and Tennessee.

In 1915, inspired by the poem "In Flanders Fields," Moina Michael
replied with her own poem:

We cherish too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led,
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies.

She then conceived of an idea to wear red poppies
on Memorial day in honor of those who died serving the nation during war.
She was the first to wear one, and sold poppies to
her friends and co-workers with the money going
to benefit servicemen in need.
Later a Madam Guerin from France was visiting the United States
and learned of this new custom started by Ms.Michael and
when she returned to France, made artificial red poppies
to raise money for war orphaned children and widowed women.
This tradition spread to other countries.

In 1921, the Franco-American Children's League sold poppies
nationally to benefit war orphans of France and Belgium.
The League disbanded a year later and
Madam Guerin approached the VFW for help.
Shortly before Memorial Day in 1922 the VFW became
the first veterans' organization to nationally sell poppies.
Two years later their "Buddy" Poppy program was selling
artificial poppies made by disabled veterans.
In 1948 the US Post Office honored Ms Michael for her role
in founding the National Poppy movement by issuing
a red 3 cent postage stamp with her likeness on it.

Traditional observance of Memorial day has diminished over the years.
Many Americans nowadays have forgotten the meaning and
traditions of Memorial Day.
At many cemeteries,
the graves of the fallen are increasingly ignored, neglected.

Most people no longer remember
the proper flag etiquette for the day.
While there are towns and cities that still hold Memorial Day parades,
many have not held a parade in decades.
Some people think the day is for honoring any and all dead,
and not just those fallen in service to our country.