Planning Ahead For Peabody's Memorial Day Events

PEABODY, MA — Peabody will host its annual Memorial Day parade and remembrance ceremony on May 26.

The parade will begin at 11 a.m. at the intersection of Washington Street and Allens Lane. The parade will proceed East on Washington Street and then West on Main Street to City Hall.

Both Washington Street and portions of Main Street and Lowell Street will be closed to traffic during the parade.

After the parade, there will be a ceremony in front of City Hall honoring fallen heroes and acknowledging Peabody's recent designation as a Purple Heart City, which expresses special gratitude to those who were wounded or killed in combat.

The Purple Heart is the oldest American military decoration in present use.

It was created by General George Washington on August 7, 1782, as The Badge of Military Merit.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)