Memorial Day
Established by General John A. Logan's General Order no. 11, Memorial Day is the United States federal holiday set aside to remember the sacrifice of the men and women of the United States armed forces who gave their lives during the performance of their duty to the country. The legal heirs and successors of the Grand Army of the Republic, the act of observing Memorial Day is a key tenet of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, as passed down by our Fathers.
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MAJOR GENERAL THOMAS WEST SHERMAN 2025 MEMORIAL DAY OBSERVANCE
Origin
Logan's Order no. 11
On May 5, 1868, General John A. Logan, as Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), issued General Order No. 11 designating May 30 “for the purpose of strewing with flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion.”
Tradition
May 30
Logan's Order originally set aside May 30 as the the annual day of observance. The exact reason for this date is unknown, although it is noted that 30 May, 1868 fell on a Saturday. As a result of General Logan's specificity regarding the date of the 1868 observance, and the lack of any subsequent General Order by succeeding Commanders-in-Chief, the Grand Army of the Republic began to traditionally assemble on 30 May for the purpose of "Decoration Day."
An Evolving and Revolving Holiday
Patriotic observance and recognition.
As early as 1873, New York officially adopted Decoration Day as an annual holiday, and by 1890, all of the Union states had done likewise.
As noted by the National Cemetery Administration, The federal government continued to recognize Memorial Day through legislative actions. "The Congressional joint resolution approved May 11, 1950 (64 Stat. 158), has requested the President to issue a proclamation calling upon the people of the United States to observe each Memorial Day as a day of prayer for permanent peace and designating a period during each such day when the people of the United States might unite in such supplication." 2
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National Holiday
Keeping Green the Memory
A congressional resolution in 1966 officially recognized a century of Memorial Day events held on May 30 in Waterloo, NY, officially proclaimed by President Lyndon B. Johnson. Thus the federal government declared this location as the "birthplace" of Memorial Day. Shortly after that, the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, legislation enacted in 1968 — effective in 1971 — designated Memorial Day a national holiday and moved it from May 30 to the last Monday in May. 3
While Memorial Day is now a rotating "date" instead of a rotating "day," many localities and organizations still recognize 30 May as either Memorial Day or Decoration Day with appropriate observances.
Memorial Day with Major General Thomas West Sherman Camp no. 1
For the past several years, Camp 1 has conducted a traditional Memorial Day service at the Warren-Lawton Post Grand Army of the Republic lot at Island Cemetery, Newport, in the afternoon on the Federal Monday Holiday. Additionally, in past years the Camp has held ceremonies at Ft. Adams Cemetery and at specific grave sites in Newport, Middletown and Portsmouth, RI.
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Memorial Day observances on Aquidneck Island are varied, and there are many organizations whose public and private events overlap with each other for the entirety of a weekend. In the weeks leading up to Memorial Day, there are also several organizations that are participants in the Rhode Island Veterans Cemetery flag program for the purpose of placing U.S. Flags on the graves of veterans all across Newport County, who hold "flagging days" where the public is welcome to join in the completion of this duty.​