By: HISTORY.com Editors

1868

Civil War dead honored on Decoration Day

HISTORY.com Editors

Published: February 09, 2010Last Updated: January 31, 2025

By proclamation of General John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic, the first major Memorial Day observance is held to honor those who died “in defense of their country during the late rebellion.” Known to some as “Decoration Day,” mourners honored the Civil War dead by decorating their graves with flowers. On the first Decoration Day, May 30, 1868, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, after which 5,000 participants helped to decorate the graves of the more than 20,000 Civil War soldiers buried in the cemetery.

Memorial Day

Take a look at the holiday honoring America's fallen heroes.

The 1868 celebration was inspired by local observances that had taken place in various locations in the three years since the end of the Civil War. In fact, several cities claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day, including Columbus, Mississippi; Macon, Georgia; Richmond, Virginia; Boalsburg, Pennsylvania; and Carbondale, Illinois. In 1966, the federal government, under the direction of President Lyndon B. Johnson, declared Waterloo, New York, the official birthplace of Memorial Day. They chose Waterloo—which had first celebrated the day on May 5, 1866—because the town had made Memorial Day an annual, community-wide event, during which businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of soldiers with flowers and flags.

By the late 19th century, many communities across the country had begun to celebrate Memorial Day, and after World War I, observers began to honor the dead of all of America’s wars. In 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be celebrated the last Monday in May. Today, Memorial Day is celebrated at Arlington National Cemetery with a ceremony in which a small American flag is placed on each grave. It is customary for the president or vice president to give a speech honoring the contributions of the dead and to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. More than 5,000 people attend the ceremony annually. Some Southern states set aside a special day for honoring the Confederate dead, which is usually called Confederate Memorial Day.

One of the Earliest Memorial Day Ceremonies Was Held by Freed African Americans

At the close of the Civil War, people recently freed from slavery in Charleston honored fallen Union soldiers.

At the close of the Civil War, people recently freed from slavery in Charleston honored fallen Union soldiers.

Timeline

Also on This Day in History

Discover more of the major events, famous births, notable deaths and everything else history-making that happened on May 30th

Joan of Arc is burned at the stake for heresy

19-year-old Joan of Arc, the peasant girl who became the savior of France, is burned at the stake for heresy.

5:02m read

ENTRYF JOANF ARC INTO...

Playwright Christopher Marlowe killed in tavern brawl

Playwright Christopher Marlowe, 29, is killed in a brawl over a bar tab on this day. Marlowe, born two months before William Shakespeare, was the son of a Canterbury shoemaker. A bright student, he won scholarships to prestigious schools and earned his B.A. from Cambridge in 1584. He was nearly denied his master’s degree in […]

1:10m read

Future president Andrew Jackson kills Charles Dickinson in a duel

On May 30, 1806, future President Andrew Jackson kills a man who accused him of cheating on a horse race bet and then insulted his wife, Rachel. Contemporaries described Jackson, who had already served in Tennessee’s Senate and was practicing law at the time of the duel, as argumentative, physically violent and fond of dueling […]

2:04m read

Bandit Pearl Hart holds up an Arizona stagecoach

The amateur bandit Pearl Hart and her boyfriend hold up an Arizona stagecoach on May 30, 1899. Little is known about Pearl Hart’s early life. She was born in Ontario, Canada in 1871, and moved to Toronto as a child. She eloped when she was 16, but her husband abused her and the marriage did […]

2:34m read

First Indianapolis 500 held

On May 30, 1911, Ray Harroun drives his single-seater Marmon Wasp to victory in the inaugural Indianapolis 500, now one of the world’s most famous motor racing competitions. The Indiana automobile dealer Carl Fisher first proposed building a private auto testing facility in 1906, in order to address car manufacturers’ inability to test potential top […]

2:04m read

The First Balkan War ends

On May 30, 1913, a peace treaty is signed ending the First Balkan War, in which the newly aligned Slavic nations of Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria and Greece had driven Turkish forces out of Macedonia, a territory of the Ottoman Empire located in the tumultuous Balkans region of southeastern Europe. After rebellion in Macedonia—led by a […]

Warren G. Harding becomes the first president to be heard on the radio

On May 30, 1922, President Warren G. Harding becomes the first president to have his voice transmitted by radio while addressing a crowd at the dedication of the Lincoln Memorial. The broadcast heralded a revolutionary shift in how presidents addressed the American public. It was not until three years later, however, that a president would […]

2:32m read

Former President Taft dedicates Lincoln Memorial

Former President William Howard Taft dedicates the Lincoln Memorial on the Washington Mall on May 30, 1922. At the time, Taft was serving as chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. A crowd gathered on the Mall to witness the ceremony. The neoclassical monument honors 16th U.S. president Abraham Lincoln. Congress authorized construction of a monument […]

Nissan Motor Company founded

On May 30, 1934, the Tokyo-based Jidosha-Seizo Kabushiki-Kaisha (Automobile Manufacturing Co., Ltd. in English) takes on a new name: Nissan Motor Company. Jidosha-Seizo Kabushiki-Kaisha had been established in December 1933. The company’s new name, adopted in June 1934, was an abbreviation for Nippon Sangyo, a “zaibatsu”(or holding company) belonging to Tobata’s founder, Yoshisuke Aikawa. Nissan […]

1:46m read

Japanese American Fred Korematsu is arrested for resisting internment

On May 30, 1942, Fred Korematsu is arrested in San Leandro, California for resisting internment under President Franklin Roosevelt’s controversial Executive Order 9066, which called for the incarceration of nearly all Japanese Americans in the United States in the wake of Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor. Following his conviction and incarceration in a Utah camp, […]

Auschwitz gets a new doctor: “the Angel of Death”

On May 30, 1943, the extermination camp at Auschwitz, Poland, receives a new doctor, 32-year-old Josef Mengele, a man who will earn the nickname “the Angel of Death.” Born March 16, 1911, in Bavaria, Mengele studied philosophy under Alfred Rosenberg, whose racial theories highly influenced him. In 1934, already a member of the Nazi Party, […]

“One Hundred Years of Solitude” is published

On May 30, 1967, Gabriel Garcia Márquez’s Cien años de soledad, or One Hundred Years of Solitude, is first published. The book, often referred to as a defining work of Latin American literature, made Márquez a prime candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature, which he was awarded in 1982. One Hundred Years of Solitude follows […]

1:54m read

Republic of Biafra proclaimed

After suffering through years of suppression under Nigeria’s military government, the breakaway state of Biafra proclaims its independence from Nigeria. In 1960, Nigeria gained independence from Britain. Six years later, the Muslim Hausas in northern Nigeria began massacring the Christian Igbos in the region, prompting tens of thousands of Igbos to flee to the east, […]

1:00m read

Mariner 9 departs for Mars

The U.S. unmanned space probe Mariner 9 is launched on a mission to gather scientific information on Mars, the fourth planet from the sun. The 1,116-pound spacecraft entered the planet’s orbit on November 13, 1971, and circled Mars twice each day for almost a year, photographing the surface and analyzing the atmosphere with infrared and […]

1:20m read

Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev arrives in Washington for a summit

Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev arrives in Washington, D.C., for three days of talks with President George Bush. The summit meeting centered on the issue of Germany and its place in a changing Europe. When Gorbachev arrived for this second summit meeting with President Bush, his situation in the Soviet Union was perilous. The Soviet economy, […]

1:58m read

NYC teacher Jonathan Levin is tortured and killed by his former student

Jonathan Levin, a popular 31-year-old English teacher, is stabbed and shot to death in his Upper West Side apartment in New York City. The son of Time Warner chairman Gerald Levin, Jonathan was known by many to be wealthy. When he did not show up for work, investigators searched his apartment and found his lifeless […]

1:18m read

Related Articles

10 Ways the Transcontinental Railroad Affected America

10 Ways the Transcontinental Railroad Changed America

The country, from its commerce to the environment to even its concept of time, was profoundly altered after the completion of the railroad's 1,776 miles of track.

A map showing the westward trail from Missouri to Oregon.

Was the Oregon Trail a Real Trail?

Even before Oregon Country—the disputed area claimed in the early 1800s by both Great Britain and the United States—was officially claimed by Congress as a United States territory in 1846, pioneers had been traveling west to explore its bounty.

Chinatown, San Francisco, 1900.

How American Chinatowns Emerged Amid 19th-Century Racism

Facing economic threats and violence, early Chinese immigrants banded together and created communities to survive—and thrive.

Trappers, traders and Native Americans gathering for the annual rendezvous. Undated drawing.

This Frontier Fur Market Was Part Trade Show, Part Wild Party

Think of it as a mountain man convention.

See All Articles

About the author

HISTORY.com Editors

HISTORY.com works with a wide range of writers and editors to create accurate and informative content. All articles are regularly reviewed and updated by the HISTORY.com team. Articles with the “HISTORY.com Editors” byline have been written or edited by the HISTORY.com editors, including Amanda Onion, Missy Sullivan, Matt Mullen, Christian Zapata and Cristiana Lombardo.

Fact Check

We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate.

Citation Information

Article title: Civil War dead honored on Decoration Day
Author: HISTORY.com Editors
Website Name: History
URL: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/may-30/civil-war-dead-honored-on-decoration-day

Date Accessed: September 02, 2025
Publisher: A&E Television Networks
Last Updated: January 31, 2025
Original Published Date: February 09, 2010

History Every Day

Sign Up for This Day in History

Uncover fascinating moments from the past every day! Learn something new with key events in history, from the American Revolution to pop culture, crime and more.

By submitting your information, you agree to receive emails from HISTORY and A+E Global Media. You can opt out at any time. You must be 16 years or older and a resident of the United States.More details: Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Contact Us