Memorial Day History: 55 Names Added To Orland Park Memorial

ORLAND PARK, IL — Memorial Day is a holiday people throughout Orland Park and across America look forward to every year as the start of summer.

It also gives people a chance to look back, as the final Monday in May is a day to remember all American lives lost during military service.

Here are five things to know about the history of Memorial Day:

• It Was Originally Called Decoration Day: Remembering veterans who died while in military service in late May dates back to 1868, when Gen. John A. Logan called for a day of remembrance to honor the Northern lives lost amid battle during the Civil War that had ended just a few years earlier, according to History.com. Logan called it “Decoration Day,” which it was known as for several years. As time passed, more and more people called it Memorial Day, History.com reported, and it became a federal holiday in 1971.
• Local Services: Memorial Day traditions in Orland Park have been ongoing for years. This year, the Orland Park community is invited to join the Village this Memorial Day in remembrance of those who have given their lives for our country. The ceremony will be held at 11 a.m. on Monday, May 31 at the Village’s memorial, Ara Pace – Place of Peace, located outside of Village Hall at 14700 S. Ravinia Avenue in Orland Park.

The names of the 55 veterans that have been recently added to the Village’s granite wall will be read aloud during the ceremony, according to the village. See more information here.

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• Birthplace Of Memorial Day: The Memorial Day holiday tradition in Waterloo, New York, dates back even longer than Logan’s call for a day of remembrance. Waterloo first celebrated on May 5, 1866, as local businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers and flags, according to History.com.

"The people of Waterloo are justly proud of this outstanding event in the history of their community," then-New York Gov. Nelson Rockefeller said in 1966, when the federal government recognized the upstate village about midway between Rochester and Syracuse as the “birthplace of Memorial Day.”

Although its event is canceled for the second consecutive year due to the coronavirus, Waterloo holds a yearly two-day celebration — complete with a car show, Civil War memorial and 5K races — as a nod to the village’s rich connection to the holiday’s history.

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• A Civil War Holiday At First: Until World War I, Memorial Day, or Decoration Day as noted above, was only meant to honor those who died while fighting for the union in the Civil War, as Southern states honored their war dead on a separate day. After the 116,000-plus American deaths in World War I, the holiday took on a new role to remember all who have died while serving in the military.

National Moment Of Remembrance: Every year, a national moment of remembrance is held at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day. The midday time was chosen “because it is the time when many Americans are enjoying their freedoms on the national holiday,” according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.