- Memorial Day Overview

  - Federal holiday on the last Monday in May.

  - Honors deceased U.S. service members.

  - Originated as Decoration Day in 1868 by the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR).

- Early Years

  - Decoration of soldiers' graves by communities during and after the Civil War.

  - GAR's General Orders No. 11 established Memorial Day on May 30, 1868.

  - Various claims to the first Memorial Day observance, including:

    - April 1866, Columbus, GA by the Ladies Memorial Association.

    - October 1864, Boalsburg, PA by three women.

    - May 1, 1865, Charleston, SC by Black freedmen and White allies.

  - Competing claims between Columbus, GA and Columbus, MS.

- President Lyndon Johnson declares Waterloo, N.Y. the birthplace of Memorial Day

- Decoration Day Celebrations

  - May 30 chosen for flower availability.

  - First national celebration at Arlington National Cemetery in 1868.

  - Included parades, ceremonies, and gravesite decorations.

- Remembrance Evolution

  - Expanded to honor those who died in all American wars post-World War I.

  - Woman's Relief Corps (WRC) helped in flower collection and wreath making.

  - Memorial Day Act tablets installed by the U.S. Army in cemeteries.

- Legislative Actions

  - 1950: Congress requested Memorial Day observance as a day of prayer for peace.

  - 1966: Memorial Day events in Waterloo, NY recognized as the "birthplace" of Memorial Day.

  - 1971: Uniform Monday Holiday Act moved Memorial Day to the last Monday in May.

  - 2000: National Moment of Remembrance Act established a moment of silence at 3 pm local time on Memorial Day.

- John Alexander Logan

  - Born in 1826, fought in the Mexican-American War and Civil War.

  - Served in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate.

  - National commander of the GAR and issued General Orders No. 11.

  - Interred at the Soldier's and Airmen's Home National Cemetery in Washington, DC.

- GAR and Memorial Day Legacy

  - GAR, founded in 1866, became a powerful Union veterans' organization.

  - Membership peaked in 1890, disbanded in 1956.

  - Legacy continued by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW).

- Popular Literature

  - Theodore O'Hara's "Bivouac of the Dead" featured in national cemeteries.

  - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "Decoration Day" poem (1882).

  - Paul Lawrence Dunbar's "Ode for Memorial Day" (1896), honoring valor and sacrifice.

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 Memorial Day Overview

  - Originally called Decoration Day.

  - A day of remembrance for those who died in service to the U.S.

  - Officially declared Waterloo, NY, as the birthplace in May 1966 by President Lyndon Johnson.

- Origins and Proclamation

  - Borne out of the Civil War desire to honor the dead.

  - Proclaimed on May 5, 1868, by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR).

  - General Order No. 11 designated May 30, 1868, for decorating soldiers' graves.

- First Decoration Day

  - May 30, 1868: 5,000 participants decorated graves of 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington Cemetery.

  - General James Garfield gave a historic speech.

- Recognition and Evolution

  - New York first recognized the holiday in 1873.

  - Recognized by all northern states by 1890.

  - Southern states honored their dead on separate days until after World War I.

  - Memorial Day expanded to honor Americans who died in any war after World War I.

  - National Holiday Act of 1971 moved Memorial Day to the last Monday in May, ensuring a three-day weekend.

- Southern States' Additional Memorial Days

  - Texas: January 19

  - Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi: April 26

  - South Carolina: May 10

  - Louisiana, Tennessee: June 3 (Jefferson Davis’ birthday)

- Red Poppies Tradition

  - Inspired by the poem "In Flanders Fields" in 1915.

  - Moina Michael promoted wearing red poppies to honor war dead.

  - Madam Guerin from France spread the tradition, making and selling artificial poppies.

  - 1921: Franco-American Children’s League sold poppies nationally.

  - 1922: VFW began selling poppies, starting the "Buddy" Poppy program.

  - 1948: U.S. Post Office issued a red 3-cent stamp honoring Moina Michael.

- National Moment of Remembrance

  - Established in December 2000.

  - At 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day, Americans pause for a moment of silence or listen to "Taps".