Memorial Day was formerly known as Decoration Day. It is the last Monday in May. This year it will be celebrated on May 31. Unlike Veteran’s Day when we remember and honor all who served, Memorial Day is a day to remember and honor the men and women who died while serving in the military for the United States of America. Armed Forces Day, celebrated on the third Saturday in May (May 15, 2021) is a day to thank the men and women currently serving in the United States Armed Services.

Other countries have similar holidays to honor their fallen soldiers.

In the South, a group of freed slaves in Charleston, South Carolina organized a day of remembrance for the soldiers killed in the war shortly after the Confederacy surrendered in 1865.

Decoration Day originated after the American Civil War. The first national celebration of Decoration Day occurred on May 30, 1868. General John Logan the commander in chief of the veteran’s group The Grand Army of the Republic ordered May 30 should be a day to remember the 620,000 soldiers killed during the American Civil War. He chose that date because it was one of the rare dates that did not commemorate a Civil War battle.

The holiday was first referred to as Memorial Day in 1882. The name quickly gained popularity but did not become the official name of our day of remembrance and mourning until 1967.

On June 28, 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act moving the dates of four holidays including Memorial Day to a specified Monday to create convenient three-day weekends. Memorial Day moved from May 30 to the last Monday in May. The Act went into effect at the federal level in 1971, but it would take a few years for all 50 states to comply.

In the morning on Memorial Day, the United States flag is raised briskly then lowered to half-mast until noon when it is raised again.

In 2000, Congress passed the National Moment of Remembrance Act asking people to stop and remember at 3:00 pm on Memorial Day.

Throughout the country, people visit cemeteries and place flowers, flags, and wreaths to honor the men and women who died while serving their country in the armed forces. Communities hold parades and remembrance ceremonies. Friends and family have get-togethers to usher in the start of summer.

Source for this article:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Day

https://www.history.com/news/8-things-you-may-not-know-about-memorial-day

https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/memorial-day-history