Memorial Day Weekend 2023: Things To Do In Northport

NORTHPORT, NY — The upcoming Memorial Day service/parade in Northport is part of a nearly 160-year American tradition that pays tribute to military personnel who lost their lives in service to their country.

The Northport Memorial Day Parade at 10 a.m. May 29 is the highlight of the three-day Memorial Day Weekend — May 27-29 this year.

The parade kicks off at the William Brosnan School on Laurel Avenue and continues down Main Street to Northport Village Park.

Other nearby parades include:

• Knights of Columbus #6893 in East Northport. 12:15 to 1 p.m. Departs IGA parking lot (Larkfield and Clay Pitts roads); heads north on Larkfield Road to John Walsh Park.
• Elwood/Commack VFW Post 9263 Parade. 10 to 11:30 a.m. Departs from Home Depot southeast parking lot; turns left onto Jericho Turnpike to Fred Amore Canon Park.
• Centerport Fire Department Parade. 10 a.m. to noon. Departs Centershore Road/Harrison Drive; left on Mill Dam Road; right on Prospect Road; right on Little Neck Road; ends at Park Circle Memorial.

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

Memorial Day Weekend is also the unofficial kickoff to summer in Northport.

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.