Memorial Day’s Name, Reason and Date Changed

Decoration Day started as an unofficial holiday in 1868 to celebrate and honor soldiers who died during the U.S. Civil War. Now called Memorial Day, the holiday celebrates all American military men and women who died in any U.S. war or military action.

In 1971, Congress made it an official federal holiday 148 years after communities began honoring casualties of the Civil War. The day for the holiday was changed from May 30th to the last Monday in May, making it one of the five, three-day federal holidays.

The mounting number of deaths of U.S. military members during the world wars and the Korean conflict encouraged public sentiment that military causalities in all conflicts should be honored during Memorial Day.

Nonessential employees get a paid holiday on the last Monday of May. Most states offer a day off for their government employees.

Memorial Day is the unofficial beginning of summer. Most of the country gets weather that’s warmer as spring replaces the cold months, and people often take time to visit extended family members. Highways congested with traffic result from the number of people traveling to spend time with relatives and friends.

Patriotic feelings get strong during the holiday because of parades we see and speeches we hear honoring the country’s military members. Seeing the number of American flags flying in front of homes during the holiday emphasizes the feelings of honor, courage and sacrifice people feel towards our nation. These feelings are the real reasons the country celebrates Memorial Day.

This short post gives an overview of Memorial Day.  You can learn more about this national holiday by visiting my 2014 blog post: Memorial Day Provides Remembrance and Fun 

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