MEMORIAL DAY 2004

On Monday, May 31st, the people of the United States of America will observe Memorial Day to honor the service men and women who have died for our country.

This holiday was first established in 1868 as Decoration Day, when General John Logan, Commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, ordered that flowers be placed on the graves of both Union and Confederate soldiers buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

During World War I, the holiday was expanded to honor not only the Civil War dead but all those who had fallen in service to America. Since the late 1950s, soldiers of the 3rd U.S. Infantry have placed small American flags at each of the more than 260,000 graves at Arlington. Other Americans decorate the graves of their loved ones at military and civilian cemeteries throughout the nation.

In addition, for the past five years, many people have observed a National Moment of Remembrance at 3:00 p.m. local time on Memorial Day. Wherever you are, I hope you will join me in pausing to pay your respects and recall all those who have died for our country and our freedom. At the same time, let us send our thoughts and prayers to those brave men and women who are now serving America in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere around the world.

THE HISTORY OF MEMORIAL DAY

"We should guard their graves with sacred vigilance. ... Let pleasant paths invite the coming and going of reverent visitors and fond mourners. Let no neglect, no ravages of time, testify to the present or to the coming generations that we have forgotten as a people the cost of a free and undivided republic."

- Major General John A. Logan

On May 5th, 1866, local veterans in Waterloo, New York, held a ceremony to honor soldiers who lost their lives in the Civil War. Businesses in the city were closed and flags were flown at half-staff. Similar observances were occurring in towns such as Columbus, Mississippi; Richmond, Virginia; and Boalsburg, Pennsylvania.

Two years later, Major General John A. Logan, head of a group of Union Army veterans called the Grand Army of the Republic, declared May 30th as a day for the nation to decorate the graves of those who lost their lives in the Civil War. At the first widely attended celebration held in Arlington National Cemetery, participants decorated the graves of more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers.

By the end of the 19th century, Memorial Day ceremonies were being held nationwide, and the Army and Navy adopted regulations for proper observance at their facilities.

After World War I, the day was expanded to honor those who died in all American wars.

In 1971, the U.S. Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be observed on the last Monday in May.

MEMORIAL DAY EVENT LOCATOR

Select a county below to find a Memorial Day 2004 event near you.

Click here for a complete list of events.

MEMORIAL DAY EVENTS IN NATIONAL CEMETERIES IN CALIFORNIA