A few Memorial Day facts.
Where was the first Memorial Day observed? It depends on whom you ask. Approximately 25 towns have been linked to its origins, including Macon, Ga.; Richmond, Va.; and Boalsburg, Pa. In 1966, Congress and President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo, N.Y., as the birthplace of the holiday.
The day began as a tribute to those who died fighting in the Civil War. It wasn't until after World War I that the remembrance expanded to honor Americans who died in all wars.
Congress established Memorial Day as a national holiday in 1971 and set it for the last Monday in May. The observance was originally called Decoration Day, a name still used by some.
A Gallup poll conducted in 2000 showed that only 28 percent of Americans knew the meaning of Memorial Day. Children touring the nation's capital once told officials that they knew Memorial Day as "the day the pool opens."
In 2000, Congress set 3 p.m. on Memorial Day as a National Moment of Remembrance. Americans are asked to pause for one minute at that time in an act of national unity to honor those who died fighting for our freedom.
SOURCES: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; White House Commission on Remembrance
Where was the first Memorial Day observed? It depends on whom you ask. Approximately 25 towns have been linked to its origins, including Macon, Ga.; Richmond, Va.; and Boalsburg, Pa. In 1966, Congress and President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo, N.Y., as the birthplace of the holiday.
The day began as a tribute to those who died fighting in the Civil War. It wasn't until after World War I that the remembrance expanded to honor Americans who died in all wars.
Congress established Memorial Day as a national holiday in 1971 and set it for the last Monday in May. The observance was originally called Decoration Day, a name still used by some.
A Gallup poll conducted in 2000 showed that only 28 percent of Americans knew the meaning of Memorial Day. Children touring the nation's capital once told officials that they knew Memorial Day as "the day the pool opens."
In 2000, Congress set 3 p.m. on Memorial Day as a National Moment of Remembrance. Americans are asked to pause for one minute at that time in an act of national unity to honor those who died fighting for our freedom.
SOURCES: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; White House Commission on Remembrance
