What's the Real Meaning of Memorial Day?
Many celebrate the long Memorial Day weekend with barbecues and family get-togethers, but Memorial Day is so much more than a chance to kick off the summer months. At its heart, Memorial Day is a time to solemnly honor all men and women who have died in U.S. military service. Read on to learn more about the true meaning of Memorial Day, as well as some interesting Memorial Day facts and Memorial Day history.Related:
This year, Memorial Day falls on May 26, 2025. Memorial Day is always the last Monday in May.
No. Memorial Day always falls on the last Monday of May. As a result, the date varies each year.
Memorial Day commemorates all men and women who have died in U.S. military service. It's not to be confused with Veterans Day, which celebrates the service of U.S. military veterans, or with Armed Forces Day, which honors men and women currently in service.
Yes, Memorial Day honors the sacrifice of those who died in U.S. military service.
Memorial Day began a few years after the Civil War, in 1868. An organization of Union veterans established the holiday, then known as Decoration Day, as a time to decorate the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers. From then until the present day, the solemn holiday has been formally observed at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C. In 2000, Congress passed the National Moment of Remembrance Act, which encourages Americans to observe a moment of silence at 3 p.m. local time to remember those who have died in service. "I am oppressed with a sense of the impropriety of uttering words on this occasion," then-Congressman James Garfield said in an 1868 Decoration Day address at Arlington, which still captures the true meaning of Memorial Day today. "If silence is ever golden, it must be here beside the graves of fifteen thousand men, whose lives were more significant than speech, and whose death was a poem, the music of which can never be sung."Related: Memorial Day Freebies for Veterans
Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day.
The holiday began as a way to honor soldiers who died in the Civil War, but the day now honors all U.S. veterans who have sacrificed their lives.
There's a specific way to display the American flag on Memorial Day. According to the U.S. Flag Code: hoist the flag quickly up to full staff at sunrise, then lower to half-staff until noon, and then return to the top of the staff.
Many veterans, as well as friends and family of veterans, make a pilgrimage to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., over Memorial Day weekend.
In 1971, Memorial Day was established as a federal holiday taking place on the last Monday in May.
Poppies have become a symbol of Memorial Day because they are mentioned in a 1915 poem by Canadian soldier John McCrae, "In Flanders Fields."
Many Americans mark Memorial Day with an official moment of remembrance at 3 p.m. local time.
During the 3 p.m. moment of remembrance on Memorial Day, Amtrak conductors sound one long whistle in honor of those who have died in service.
Traditionally, American presidents give a Memorial Day speech at Arlington National Cemetery at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
New York was the first state to recognize Memorial Day as an official holiday.
Some Southern states celebrate a Confederate Memorial Day, or Confederate Heroes Day, in late April, remembering the Confederate soldiers who died during the Civil War.
The first Indianapolis 500 race took place on Memorial Day in 1911.
The Lincoln Memorial was dedicated by then-Chief Justice William Taft on Memorial Day in 1922.
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6 hours ago
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How a WWII submariner took the fight directly to the Japanese
By the middle of 1944, United States Navy submarines had weathered hard times of unreliable torpedoes and a necessary learning process to matured weapons of war, aided by onboard radar. At the same time, their Japanese opponents had yet to fully address the threat that these underwater marauders posed to the ships that brought oil and other foreign resources from their far-flung empire. So fully developed were the American subs that Adm. Chester W. Nimitz, commander in chief of naval forces, Pacific (CINCPAC), had started the year off by adding destroyers to his priority lists, so as to accelerate the elimination of America's principal enemies. Like their German counterparts, the Americans were also operating in wolf packs of two or more, while the Japanese were modifying and arming numerous varieties of other ships, such as minesweepers, to make up their sub-hunter losses. A dramatic example of the situation in 1944 began in mid-June, when three boats from Submarine Attack Group 9, named 'Parks' Pirates' for their commander, Cmdr. Lewis Smith Parks, departed Pearl Harbor to prowl the waters from Formosa to Luzon. They were led by Cmdr. Lawson P. 'Red' Ramage on Parche, followed by Steelhead and Hammerhead. The Massachusetts native graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy as an ensign in July 1931, with his first attempt to get a submarine assignment initially blocked due to an eye injury. His second attempt, in which he memorized the eye chart, succeeded in getting him aboard S-29 in January 1936. He was a radio and sound officer at Pearl Harbor in March 1941, and he was there when Japanese carrier planes raided it on Dec. 7. On June 6, 1944, Parks' Pirates embarked on their first patrol, with modest initial results for Hammerhead: a sampan destroyed on June 9, followed by a coastal oil carrier damaged. On July 29, Hammerhead had to curtail its sweep when it came under air attack, returning for repairs at Fremantle, Australia, on Aug. 17. At 10:30 a.m. on July 30, Steelhead was off Formosa when it sighted smoke, which, upon investigation, revealed an enemy convoy escorted by aircraft. Unable to attack until nightfall, Steelhead maintained contact until 8:15 p.m., when it shot off a message summoning Parche, relaying the enemy's course and speed. Ramage responded at full speed, joining Steelhead at midnight to make surface attacks. The latter commenced hostilities at 3:32 a.m. with a bow spread of six torpedoes that struck a freighter, then a tanker. Steelhead then turned to launch four stern 'fish,' while two flares signaled the Japanese alarm. Ramage had been trying to set up a flank attack at about 3 a.m. when he encountered an escort vessel. Enemy flares revealed three such escorts darting about, two of which were between Parche and the convoy, and one bearing down on the sub. Ramage put his boat into a circular maneuver that brought it astern of the escort, confusing the enemy. 'Parche was now between the escorts and the convoy,' Ramage reported afterward, 'but while this maneuver was going on, the entire [enemy] convoy had reversed its field and now was headed directly at Parche.' Ramage aimed for an oncoming medium freighter, but he overestimated the range and suddenly found himself a mere 450 yards from his intended target. A hard right turn avoided disaster by only 200 yards. Ramage then shot off two torpedoes. His freighter target dodged them, but in so doing it blocked the advance of an escort, preventing it from attacking the sub while allowing it to get off two bow shots, one of which hit the freighter. Five minutes later, Ramage brought Parche into position to attack two tankers. All four of his bow torpedoes struck home on the first tanker, which sank immediately. The second tanker, hit twice, slowed but kept on moving. At this point, Parche was in the middle of a milling mass of cargo ships and escorts, all ships involved behaving more like patrol torpedo boats in their half-blind attempts to ram their assailant. As for Ramage, placing his boat in the center of it all, he too alternated his direction and launched torpedoes as the opportunity offered, while his torpedo crew rushed new ones into place. At 4:43 a.m., Ramage was preparing to dodge two escorts when he saw a small merchantman bearing down on him from the starboard bow, determined to ram. Ordering full right rudder, he avoided collision by just 50 feet, only to find two escorts at either hand and a passenger cargo vessel coming on to ram. Unable to dodge this one, Ramage went for broke and fired three torpedoes in a down-the-throat shot. His first fish missed, but the other two hit, stopping the ship in its tracks. Ramage turned hard left, then fired a stern shot that struck the cargo ship amidships. At 4:42 a.m., it sank. After a look around, Ramage reported: 'There were still several small craft and escorts around, but no worthwhile targets that we could see. I decided to put some distance between us and this hornet's nest.' While Parche was fighting its way into a fiery hell and back, Whelchel and Steelhead were also busy on the sidelines — sending four torpedoes at a troop carrier at 4:49 a.m. and another four at a freighter. Both subs subsequently disengaged, having suffered neither damage nor casualties in the 46-minute melee. A postwar assessment credited Steelhead with the 7,169-ton freighter Dakar Maru and the 8,195-ton transport Fuso Maru. Both subs were jointly credited with the 8,990-ton transport Yoshino Maru. Parche emerged from its solo torpedo duel with credit for the 10,238-ton tanker Koei Maru and 4,471-ton passenger-cargo ship Manko Maru. Both submarine officers were decorated for their outstanding performance that night. Steelhead's commander, David Whelchel, was awarded the Silver Star, while Ramage received the Medal of Honor from President Franklin D. Roosevelt on Jan. 10, 1945 — not so much for the tonnage his sub had destroyed, considerable though it had been, as for the wild way he had achieved it. Asked what drove him throughout the encounter, he simply said, 'I got mad.' Ramage continued to rise up the Navy ranks, reaching the command of Military Sea Transport in Washington and retiring in 1969 as a vice admiral. He died in Bethesda, Maryland, on April 15, 1990, and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
These U.S. national sites honor the milestones of LGBTQ+ heritage
Just as it turned 100 in 2016, America's National Park Service (NPS) began to officially recognize the contributions that LGBTQ+ Americans have made to the rich and diverse history of the United States. Given the groundbreaking importance of New York City's Stonewall Inn to global queer history, the National Park Service (NPS) fittingly named New York City's Stonewall National Monument as its first site dedicated to preserving LGBTQ+ heritage. Since then, several other NPS sites nationwide have been acknowledged both officially and unofficially for their important ties to the queer past. Stretched across the country and spanning many eras, these places tell inspirational stories of bravery and individualism that deepen our understanding of American history. All free to the public, visits to the following six NPS-managed sites illuminate legacies not just of LGBTQ+ America, but of America itself. On a warm summer night in 1969, long-brewing tensions between New York's LGBTQ+ community and its police force finally came to a boil. In the face of yet another NYPD raid on Greenwich Village's Stonewall Inn in the early morning hours of June 28, frustrated bar-goers had finally had enough, and they put up a collective fight. The Stonewall rebellion raged on for days and swelled across the Village, marking the birth of the modern queer movement and making legends out of key participants like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera. 'Stonewall was about the fundamental right to live authentically,' says Ann Marie Gothard, co-founder of the Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center. 'That spirit of resistance and the demand for equality still exist today. Stonewall serves as a reminder that progress isn't given, it is continually fought for. It also serves as a powerful reminder that we all stand on the shoulders of previous generations.' Established in 2016, the Stonewall National Monument became the first of its kind dedicated specifically to American LGBTQ+ rights and history. In addition to the Stonewall Inn, the monument encompasses Christopher Park and several surrounding streets where the 1969 riots took place. The interpretive Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center opened last year and includes innovative exhibits like the Mothers of STAR AR Experience, which brings trans and queer icons like Johnson and Rivera back into the Stonewall space. 'Through the Visitor Center, we hope to connect contemporary queer individuals to history while fostering a sense of belonging and community, prompting a call to action for continued progress toward full equality and acceptance for all,' says to know: The Stonewall Visitor Center at 51 Christopher Street offers extended June opening hours for Pride month, Monday to Wednesday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Thursday to Sunday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Regular opening hours are Tuesday to Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (See 100 years of LGBTQ history mapped across New York City.) Waged for over six weeks in mid-1863, the Siege of Vicksburg in western Mississippi was one of the Civil War's most grueling and decisive conflicts. More than 110,000 soldiers from across the Union and Confederacy took part in the fighting, including 19-year-old Albert Cashier of the 95th Illinois Infantry. After the war, Cashier returned to Illinois and settled in the little town of Saunemin about 90 miles southwest of Chicago, where he lived quietly for decades—until his gender assigned at birth was revealed, threatening his military pension. 'Cashier served in Civil War fighting at Vicksburg, the Red River expedition, the Battle of Nashville, and more,' explains Rob Sanders, author of the children's book The Fighting Infantryman: The Story of Albert D.J. Cashier, Transgender Civil War Soldier. 'Every step this transgender soldier took during his three years of service was historic. In old age, when Albert's right to receive a military pension was questioned, the army finally declared in writing: 'Identity may be accepted.' Albert thus became the first transgender soldier in the United States to receive a military pension.' Today, the 2,500-acre Vicksburg National Military Park preserves the site of the siege, including 1,325 historic monuments and markers, a 16-mile tour road, and a 12.5-mile walking trail. The park's Illinois State Memorial, located on Union Avenue at milepost 1.8, honors Cashier and his fellow Illinoisan veterans of the siege. Good to know: The Vicksburg National Military Park Visitor Center at 3201 Clay Street is open Wednesday to Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Vehicle access to the park's tour road is open daily from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., with last entry at 4:40 p.m. (7 places that honor LGBTQ+ history—during Pride Month and beyond.) The District of Columbia's President's Park is arguably the most cherished of America's national parks, including as it does the White House, the official residence of the U.S. president. Less known to the general public is that President's Park also figures prominently in the LGBTQ+ history of DC and the nation. 'The history of President's Park illustrates the enormous progress gay men and lesbians have made in America, as well as the ways in which LGBT history is intertwined with the broader American story,' says James Kirchick, author of Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington. 'Beginning in the late 19th century, directly across from the building where the most powerful man on earth resides, some of the capital's most despised citizens—gay men—congregated under cover of night in Lafayette Square,' Kirchick explains. 'For decades, the seven-acre grounds were the most popular nocturnal 'cruising' site in the city, a place for men leading secret lives to meet one another anonymously.' Later, President's Park would serve as the site of one of America's first protests for gay rights. 'On April 17, 1965, under the auspices of the Mattachine Society of Washington, a group of openly gay men and women met outside the White House to hold the first organized picket for gay rights on Pennsylvania Avenue,' Kirchick says. Good to know: The White House Visitor Center at 1450 Pennsylvania Avenue NW is open daily from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Celebrate Pride with 10 travel books by LGBTQ authors.) She would go on to inspire generations of feminists, but Rosie the Riveter's status as a cultural icon began during World War II, when her bandana-clad, muscle-flexing character was created to inspire women to work in factories and shipyards in support of the American war effort. In 2000, the Rosie the Riveter World War II Home Front National Historical Park was established as a national park on the site of the former Richmond Shipyards near San Francisco. More ships were built at Richmond than at any other shipyard during World War II, and women made up much of its work force. Today, the park showcases the rich tapestry of Americans who came together to support the Allied cause. The exhibition 'LGBTQ Histories: Stories from the WWII Home Front,' created by independent public historian Donna Graves and now-retired park ranger Elizabeth Tucker, highlights the experiences of LGBTQ+ people in the San Francisco Bay area during the war. 'We believe it is the first LGBTQ+ exhibit at a national park, and it was opened to enthusiasm in 2016,' says Graves. 'I continue to be amazed at how it speaks to issues we address today, from housing and health care to climate change. Good to know: The Rosie the Riveter Visitor Education Center, located within the historic Ford Assembly Plant complex at 1414 Harbour Way South, is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (These monuments honor LGBTQ history around the world.) New Yorkers have been drawn for decades to Fire Island, the beachy 30-mile-long barrier island tucked just beneath Long Island. Twenty-six miles of it are now protected as Fire Island National Seashore, easily accessible by a half-hour ferry ride from the mainland. 'There are very few places like Fire Island, which has been a summer destination for queer people since as early as the 1930s,' explains Jack Parlett, author of Fire Island: A Century in the Life of an American Paradise. 'The communities of Cherry Grove and Fire Island Pines—both of which were initially developed with heterosexual families in mind—were transformed by the queer people from the city who discovered them and decided to make a home there.' These enclaves have been bastions of art, drag, disco, and sexual liberation, Parlett says. 'They have also weathered numerous challenges in the last century, from homophobic policing to the devastation of the HIV/AIDS epidemic,' he adds. 'Fire Island is also important to modern queer America, in part, because of its cultural heritage. It is a place where many beloved queer artists and writers have found solace, including James Baldwin, Patricia Highsmith and Frank O'Hara. Also, the parties are great.' Good to know: From mid-May to mid-October, visitors most commonly access Fire Island by ferry from the Long Island towns of Bay Shore, Sayville, or Patchogue, all reachable by car or the Long Island Railroad. (How historians are documenting the lives of transgender people.) Her name might not be widely known, but all working Americans owe Frances Perkins a debt of gratitude. As Franklin Roosevelt's Secretary of Labor and the first woman to ever serve in a presidential cabinet, Perkins was instrumental in developing Social Security and forging federal relationships with labor unions. Perkins was one of only two Roosevelt cabinet members to serve for his entire 1933-1945 presidency, making her the longest-serving U.S. Labor Secretary in history. Established as a national monument in 2024—one of the newest in the National Park Service system—the Frances Perkins Homestead in Newcastle, Maine had been in the Perkins family since the mid-18th century. It now encompasses the Frances Perkins Center, dedicated to highlighting Perkins' achievements. 'Perkins was the most effective social progressive in American history, responsible for crafting workplace safety laws that are universal today,' says Kirstin Downey, author of The Woman Behind the New Deal, the definitive Perkins biography, 'and as the primary architect of the Social Security program, which has provided an economic bedrock for generations of Americans.' Downey says Perkins' complex personal life included a marriage to a man and a series of intense relationships with women who shared her progressive ideals. 'She was probably the first [cabinet member] to live openly with a person of the same sex, Mary Harriman Rumsey,' Downey adds. 'She was supportive and encouraging of same-sex relationships, which she viewed as marriages.' Good to know: Accessible only by car, the Frances Perkins National Monument is located at 478 River Road. The Brick House residence remains closed for restorations during 2025, but from June 19 to September 28, the Welcome Center and Homestead Barn will be open Thursday to Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The grounds are open daily from sunrise to sunset. Dan Allen is a Los Angeles-based writer focusing on travel, culture and queer history. Follow him on Instagram @danquests.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Waverly Community House to unveil Underground Railroad historic marker
WAVERLY TWP. — Visitors at the Waverly Community House can learn about Waverly's role in the Underground Railroad with a historic marker outside the building. Community House staff will formally dedicate the marker on June 19 — Juneteenth — at 10 a.m. EJ Murphy, program manager for Destination Freedom, the interactive historical program that examines the township's history with a focus on its role in the Underground Railroad, will lead walking tours around the community house grounds following the dedication. The Destination Freedom gallery will also be open. The marker details the history of Waverly as it relates to the Underground Railroad and how the township connects with other municipalities in Northeast Pennsylvania that were significant to the cooperative system among antislavery people in the United States by which Blacks were secretly helped to reach the North. It also highlights the abolitionists and formerly enslaved people, some of whom fought for the union during the Civil War, who made the area their home. 'It's just an overview of what you can learn here if you come and take our tour,' Murphy said. Posture Interactive of Scranton designed the sign, and the base was made by Pannier Graphics of Gibsonia. Funding for the marker came from two $5,000 grants from Lackawanna Heritage Valley and the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, as well as donations through the state's Educational Improvement Tax Credit program. Murphy was inspired to add a sign detailing Waverly's role in the Underground Railroad after seeing it referenced in books on the secret network of routes and safe houses used by enslaved African Americans. The Underground Railroad is also mentioned on a state historic marker across from Hickory Grove Cemetery. 'I wanted to try to find a way that even if you're just walking around or even just walking your dog, you can kind of get a sense of the history that we offer here,' he said. * EJ Murphy, program manager for Destination Freedom, stands beside the base that will hold a historic marker that will detail Waverly's role in the Underground Railroad Tuesday, June 10, 2025. The Waverly Community House will dedicate the historic marker on Juneteenth. (Christine Lee/Staff Photo) * Gia Tugend, interim executive director of the Waverly Community House, looks through books on the American Civil War at the community house's archives Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Christine Lee/Staff Photo) * EJ Murphy, program manager for Destination Freedom, talks about some of the Civil War items on display at the Waverly Community House Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Christine Lee/Staff Photo) * A display of artifacts related to the American Civil War and the Underground Railroad is on display at the Waverly Community House Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (Christine Lee/Staff Photo) Show Caption 1 of 4 EJ Murphy, program manager for Destination Freedom, stands beside the base that will hold a historic marker that will detail Waverly's role in the Underground Railroad Tuesday, June 10, 2025. The Waverly Community House will dedicate the historic marker on Juneteenth. (Christine Lee/Staff Photo) Expand In addition to being the home of several formerly enslaved African Americans, Waverly was home to people involved with the Underground Railroad. Murphy said the marker makes more people aware of that role. 'It's just a way for people to get that connection to this history that they might not otherwise be aware of,' he said. Destination Freedom guided tours began in 2017, and in 2022 they were added to the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program, which connects sites throughout the U.S. Gia Tugend, the Waverly Community House's interim executive director, said the marker is in line with the community house's mission of education, recreation and culture. Murphy and Tugend said Juneteenth is a good way to recognize the abolition of slavery in the U.S. Destination Freedom, they added, shows the local connection to the fight to end slavery. 'I think local history makes something a little bit more tangible,' Tugend said. 'It allows people to actually see something in a different way. I feel like because they're able to be here and see the homes and see the churches and the locations on the tour … it adds a different perspective, and I feel like that's so important to us to be able to do that.' Destination Freedom tours will be offered Tuesdays at 2 p.m. during the summer months.
