On the first Decoration Day at Arlington National Cemetery in 1868, General James Garfield made a speech after which 5,000 participants helped to decorate the graves of the more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried in the cemetery. The celebration was inspired by local observances that had taken place in various locations in the three years since the end of the Civil War.
By the late 19th century, many communities across the country had begun to celebrate what is now called Memorial Day, and after World War I, observers began to honor the dead of all of America’s wars. In 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be celebrated the last Monday in May.
You’re likely to see red poppies being sold and worn on this day, a tradition inspired by the poem, In Flander’s Field, written by Lt. Colonel John McCrae in 1915. Red poppies are a symbol of the fallen military. Learn more about the significance of the poppies here.
The “National Moment of Remembrance” resolution was passed in 2000 which asks that at 3 p.m. local time, all Americans voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a Moment of Remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to ‘Taps.”
