Memorial Day Weekend 2023: Worcester Events, Ceremonies

WORCESTER, MA — Events over the upcoming Memorial Day weekend in Worcester are part of a nearly 160-year tradition that pays tribute to military personnel who died while serving in the armed forces.

A series of wreath-laying ceremonies in Worcester will be the highlight of the three day, along with the traditional water ceremony. Here are the Memorial Day events planned in Worcester:

Sunday — Water Ceremony 1 p.m. at Elm Park
Monday — Observances and wreath layings a 9 a.m. at Hope Cemetery, 11 a.m. at the Massachusetts Vietnam War Veterans Memorial at Green Hill Park and 1 p.m. at the Korean War Memorial 52 Foster St.

Alongside those ceremonies, the Worcester County Sheriff's Office, Worcester County Reserve Deputy Sheriff’s Association, East Side Post 201 American Legion, Main South Post 341, Civil Air Patrol and Blue Star Mothers of America will decorate an estimated 5,000 graves at Saint John’s Cemetery beginning Wednesday.

As the observance has changed over the years, many families also use Memorial Day as an occasion to visit local cemeteries and leave flowers at the graves of family members, regardless of whether they served in the military.

The history of Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, 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. As time passed, more and more people called it Memorial Day, and it became a federal holiday in 1971.

Waterloo, New York, is considered the birthplace of Memorial Day. The town’s observance on May 5, 1866, predated Logan’s call for a day of remembrance. Local businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers and flags.

Until World War I, the holiday honored only those soldiers who died while fighting for the Union in the War, as Southern states honored their war dead on a separate day. After the 116,000-plus American deaths in World War I, the tradition changed to remember all who have died while serving in the military.

Every year, a national moment of remembrance is held at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day. No matter where they are or what they’re doing, Americans are asked to pause for one minute in silence to remember military personnel who have given their lives in service to their country. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, the midday time was chosen because it’s a time when many Americans will be enjoying their freedoms on a national holiday.