Memorial Day Trivia
1. What was the first
state, which officially celebrated Memorial Day?
2. Originally, Memorial Day
was first known as what, the hint is the day begins with the letter d.
3. Why do we celebrate
Memorial Day?
4. Who is General John
Alexander Logan and what role does his memory play in our Memorial Day
celebrations?
5. On this special day of
remembrance, should the American Flag be half raised all-day or fly in all her
glory at full mast?
6. What is the nationally
recognized flower of Memorial Day?
7. What day of the week is
Memorial Day held on?
Memorial Day Facts
Memorial Day was declared a federal
holiday in 1971, and was designated to be held on the last Monday in May. We
now designate this day to remember loved ones who have passed on, as well as
remembering our service men and women who died while in service. Flowers and
flags are placed on graves in remembrance of them. Parades and dedications of
memorials usually are part of the day's activities. The day is sometimes known
as Decoration Day. The
U.S. National Park Service attributes the beginning of Memorial Day to
the ladies of Columbus,
Ga., who honored Confederates soldiers killed in battle
Waterloo,
N.Y., is considered the birthplace of the holiday because the people of
Waterloo were the first people to proclaim a day on May 5, 1866, to honor the
soldiers who died in the Civil War. They closed their businesses and placed
flowers and flags on the graves of their soldiers. Flags were flown at half-mast.
Major General John A. Logan
declared May 30, 1868, as a special day for honoring Union soldiers killed in
battle. He was Commander in Chief of an organization of Union Civil War
Veterans called the Grand Army of the Republic. They took charge of Memorial
Day celebrations in the Northern States. The American Legion took over these
duties after World War I.
The Southern States of
Alabama and Mississippi observe the last Monday in April as Confederate
Memorial Day. Georgia observes April 26, North and South Carolina observe May
10, Virginia observes the last day of May. Louisiana and Tennessee observe June
3 and Texas celebrates Confederate Heroes Day, January 19th.
The poppy emblem was chosen
because of the poppies that bloomed across some of the worst battlefields of
Flanders in World War I, their red color an appropriate symbol for the
bloodshed of trench warfare.
“The patriot's
blood is the seed of Freedom's tree.”
Thomas Campbell
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