Memorial Day is a United States Federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May (in 2008 on May 26). The United States of America —commonly referred to as the In the United States, a federal holiday is a Holiday recognized by the United States Government. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it commemorates U. S. men and women who perished while in military service to their country. Military service in its simplest sense is service by an individual or group in an Army or other military organization whether as a chosen job or as a result of an involuntary First enacted to honor Union soldiers of the American Civil War, it was expanded after World War I to include American casualties of any war or military action. The Union Army was the army that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All

Traditional observance

Many people observe this holiday by visiting cemeteries and memorials. A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. A memorial is an object which serves as a memory of something usually a person (who has died or an event A national moment of remembrance takes place at 3 p. m. US Eastern time. Another tradition is to fly the U.S. flag at half-staff from dawn until noon local time. Flags of the United States The Flag of the United States of America consists of 13 equal horizontal stripes of Red (top and bottom alternating Half-staff or half-mast describes a Flag flying approximately halfway up a flagpole or ship's mast (though anywhere from one-third to two-thirds of the way up is acceptable Volunteers usually place an American flag upon each grave site located in a National Cemetery. 4 Fort Snelling Looking SouthwestJPG|thumb|200px| Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Minneapolis Minnesota]]" United States National Cemetery " is a designation for 139

In addition to remembrance, Memorial Day is also used as a time for picnics, barbecues, family gatherings, and sporting events. In contemporary usage picnic can be defined simply as a pleasure excursion at which a Meal is eaten outdoors ( Al fresco or En plein air Sport is an Activity that is governed by a set of rules or Customs and often engaged in competitively One of the longest standing traditions is the running of the Indianapolis 500, which has been held in conjunction with Memorial Day since 1911. The Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, often shortened to Indianapolis 500 or Indy 500, and historically known simply as "The 500" is an American Some Americans also view Memorial Day as the unofficial beginning of summer and Labor Day as the unofficial end of the season. Summer is one of the four Temperate Seasons Summer marks the warmest time of year with the longest days Labor Day is a United States Federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September The national "Click It or Ticket" campaign ramps up beginning Memorial Day weekend, noting the beginning of the most dangerous season for auto accidents and other safety related incidents. The U.S. Air Force's "101 Critical Days of Summer" begin on this day as well. Many Americans use Memorial Day to also honor other family members who have died.

Flags flying at Fort Logan National Cemetery during Memorial Day 2006. Fort Logan National Cemetery is a National cemetery in Denver Colorado, U

Memorial Day formerly occurred on May 30, and some, such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW), advocate returning to this fixed date, although the significance of the date is tenuous. Events 1416 - The Council of Constance, called by the Emperor Sigismund a supporter of Antipope John XXIII burns Jerome of Prague following Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW is an American fraternal organization, the legal successor to the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR The VFW stated in a 2002 Memorial Day Address, "Changing the date merely to create three-day weekends has undermined the very meaning of the day. No doubt, this has contributed a lot to the general public's nonchalant observance of Memorial Day. "^[1] Hawaii's Senator Daniel Inouye, a World War II veteran, has repeatedly introduced measures to return Memorial Day to its traditional day since 1987. The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the is an American politician who currently serves as the senior United States Senator from Hawaii. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including

Community observance

In addition to national observances, many individual communities hold memorial observance for fallen soldiers who were from that town by having a ceremony in a church or town memorial park. It is common for fire and police departments to remember and honor members lost in the line of duty. Towns often hold a Memorial Day parade to remember those people. Participation in such a parade is by community organizations such as members of the local emergency services and their vehicles, Rotary Clubs, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and bands from the local high school or church groups. Emergency services are organizations which ensure Public safety by addressing different emergencies Rotary International is an organization of Service clubs known as Rotary Clubs located all over the world Communities may hold a town-wide picnic barbecue at a local park in which the whole town is invited to attend.

History

Following the end of the Civil War, many communities set aside a day to mark the end of the war or as a memorial to those who had died. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South Some of the places creating an early memorial day include Charleston, South Carolina; Boalsburg, Pennsylvania; Richmond, Virginia; Carbondale, Illinois; Columbus, Mississippi; many communities in Vermont; and some two dozen other cities and towns. Charleston is a city in Charleston county in the US state of South Carolina. Boalsburg is a Census-designated place (CDP in Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. This article is about the city of Richmond the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Carbondale is a city in southern Illinois in the midwest United States, miles southeast of Saint Louis Missouri Columbus is a city in Lowndes County, Mississippi, United States on the Tombigbee River. These observances eventually coalesced around Decoration Day, honoring the Union dead, and the several Confederate Memorial Days. The War Department was established by the Confederate Congress in an act on February 21, 1861.

According to Professor David Blight of the Yale University History Department, the first memorial day was observed in 1865 by liberated slaves at the historic race track in Charleston. The site was a former Confederate prison camp as well as a mass grave for Union soldiers who had died while captive. The freed slaves reinterred the dead Union soldiers from the mass grave to individual graves, fenced in the graveyard & built an entry arch declaring it a Union graveyard; a very daring thing to do in the South shortly after North's victory. On May 30 1868 the freed slaves returned to the graveyard with flowers they'd picked from the countryside & decorated the individual gravesites, thereby creating the 1st Decoration Day. A parade with thousands of freed blacks and Union soldiers was followed by patriotic singing and a picnic.

The official "birthplace" of Memorial Day is Boalsburg, Pennsylvania. The village was credited with being the place of origin because it observed the day on May 5, 1866, and each year thereafter, and because it is likely that the friendship of General John Murray, a distinguished citizen of Waterloo, and General John A. Logan, who led the call for the day to be observed each year and helped spread the event nationwide, was a key factor in its growth. Events 553 - The Second Council of Constantinople begins 1215 - Rebel Barons renounce their allegiance to King John Year 1866 ( MDCCCLXVI) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common For other persons with similar names see John Logan. John Alexander Logan ( February 8, 1826 &ndash December 26

General Logan had been impressed by the way the South honored their dead with a special day and decided the Union needed a similar day. Reportedly, Logan said that it was most fitting; that the ancients, especially the Greeks, had honored their dead, particularly their heroes, by chaplets of laurel and flowers, and that he intended to issue an order designating a day for decorating the grave of every soldier in the land, and if he could he would have made it a holiday. The Greeks ( Greek: Έλληνες) are a Nation and Ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighbouring regions The Bay Laurel ( Laurus nobilis, Lauraceae) also known as True Laurel, Sweet Bay, Grecian Laurel, Laurel, or

Logan had been the principal speaker in a citywide memorial observation on April 29, 1866, at a cemetery in Carbondale, Illinois, an event that likely gave him the idea to make it a national holiday. Events 1429 - Joan of Arc arrives to relieve the Siege of Orleans. Year 1866 ( MDCCCLXVI) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common On May 5, 1868, in his capacity as commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, a veterans' organization, Logan issued a proclamation that "Decoration Day" be observed nationwide. Events 553 - The Second Council of Constantinople begins 1215 - Rebel Barons renounce their allegiance to King John Year 1868 ( MDCCCLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap It was observed for the first time on May 30 of the same year; the date was chosen because it was not the anniversary of a battle. Events 1416 - The Council of Constance, called by the Emperor Sigismund a supporter of Antipope John XXIII burns Jerome of Prague following The tombs of fallen Union soldiers were decorated in remembrance of this day. For the New York prison see The Tombs. A Tomb is a repository for the remains of the dead.

Many of the states of the U.S. South refused to celebrate Decoration Day, due to lingering hostility towards the Union Army and also because there were very few veterans of the Union Army who lived in the South. The Southern United States &mdashcommonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South &mdashconstitutes a large distinctive The Union Army was the army that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. A notable exception was Columbus, Mississippi, which on April 25, 1866 at its Decoration Day commemorated both the Union and Confederate casualties buried in its cemetery. Columbus is a city in Lowndes County, Mississippi, United States on the Tombigbee River. [1]

Troops at the Washington, D.C. Memorial Day parade, 1942. Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D

The alternative name of "Memorial Day" was first used in 1882, but did not become more common until after World War II, and was not declared the official name by Federal law until 1967 . Year 1882 ( MDCCCLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including On June 28, 1968, the United States Congress passed the Uniform Holidays Bill, which moved three holidays from their traditional dates to a specified Monday in order to create a convenient three-day weekend and for the first time recognized Columbus Day as a federal holiday. Events 1098 - Fighters of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosul. Year 1968 ( MCMLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The United States Congress is the bicameral Legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses The Uniform Monday Holiday Act ( is an Act of Congress that amended the Federal holiday provisions of the United States Code to establish the observance Many countries in the New World and elsewhere celebrate the anniversary of Christopher Columbus 's arrival in the Americas, which occurred on October 12, The holidays included Washington's Birthday, Veterans Day, and Memorial Day. Washington's Birthday is a United States Federal holiday celebrated on the third Monday of February Veterans Day is an American holiday honoring military Veterans. The change moved Memorial Day from its traditional May 30 date to the last Monday in May. The law took effect at the federal level in 1971 . After some initial confusion and unwillingness to comply at the state level, all fifty states adopted the measure within a few years, although Veterans Day was eventually changed back to its traditional date. Ironically, most corporate businesses no longer close on Columbus Day or Veterans Day, and an increasing number are staying open on Washington's Birthday as well. Memorial Day, however, has endured as one holiday during which most businesses stay closed because it marks the beginning of the "summer vacation season. " This role is filled in neighboring Canada by Victoria Day, which occurs either on May 24 or the last Monday before that date, placing it exactly one week before Memorial Day. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Events 1218 - The Fifth Crusade leaves Acre for Egypt. 1276 - Magnus Ladulås is crowned

In literature and music

The southeastern U. S. celebrates Decoration Day as a day to decorate the graves of all family members, and it is not reserved for those who served in the military. The region observes Decoration Day on the Sunday before Memorial Day. Jason Isbell of the rock band Drive-By Truckers chronicled such an event in his epic ballad "Decoration Day," which is also the title cut to the eponymous album. Jason Isbell (born February 1, 1979) is a singer songwriter and guitarist from Greenhill Alabama, near Muscle Shoals. Drive-By Truckers are a Rock band based in Athens Georgia, though three out of five members (Mike Cooley Patterson Hood and Shonna Tucker originally hail Decoration Day is a rock album released by Drive-By Truckers in 2003

Charles Ives's symphonic poem "Decoration Day" depicts the holiday as he experienced it in his childhood, with his father's band leading the way to the town cemetery, the playing of Taps on a trumpet, and a livelier march tune on the way back to the town. Charles Edward Ives (October 20 1874 – May 19 1954 was an American Composer of modernist Classical music. This article is about the musical piece For other uses see Taps (disambiguation. It is frequently played with three other Ives works based on holidays as the second movement of A New England Holidays Symphony. A Symphony New England Holidays, also known as A New England Holiday Symphony or simply a Holiday Symphony, is a composition for orchestra written by

See also

• Confederate Memorial Day
• Newfoundland and Labrador Memorial Day

References

External links

• In Memory of Our Honored Dead
• National Moment of Remembrance Home Page