A Day to Remember: All about Memorial Day

by Brenden Nickels, Senior Office Assistant

Every last Monday in May, the United States celebrates Memorial Day, a day dedicated to those who died while serving in our military. It is also known as the unofficial start of the summer season, as many people go out to the lake, have barbecues, and enjoy a relaxing day off. But how did this celebration come to be?

History of Memorial Day

In 1865, after the end of the Civil War, people were wanting a way to remember those that had died in the war. They needed closure and so they could heal. It was a pharmacist named Henry C. Welles who had the idea that “it would be honorable and appropriate to recall the sacrifice of the patriotic dead by displaying floral tributes on the gravestones of the fallen.”

The day was officially proclaimed by General John Logan in his eleventh General Order. He wrote, “The 30^th of May, 1868 is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in the defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet churchyard in the land.”

While there are multiple claims of where Memorial Day, originally known as Decoration Day, was formed, New York Governor (and future Vice President) Nelson Rockefeller signed a decree in 1966 that deemed Waterloo, NY as the birthplace of the holiday.

As time passed, so did Memorial Day. It finally became an official federal holiday with the passing of the National Holiday Act of 1971. Many people commemorate the day by going to visit cemeteries and putting flowers or American flags on gravestones, going to concerts or parades, and flying the American flag at half-staff until noon, then raising it up to the top until sunset.

American flag flying by a KA crane

Honoring our past and my Ancestors

Last Memorial Day, the Nickels’ went out to Sterling Cemetery in Mapleton, MN, where my grandparents are buried. We lay flowers on their graves as well as on my great-uncle’s grave near Amboy. However, we ended up getting lost on the way and the Memorial Day program at Sterling was almost over. We made it none-the-less and use this day to honor our loved ones.

So, on May 30^th, enjoy your day off. But take some time to think about how we got here and how the sacrifices of many people got us to where we are now.