On Monday, we'll celebrate Memorial Day, a day to remember America's veterans who have died in combat.
John A. Logan, a Civil War general who would go on to be a U.S. Senator from Illinois, devised and promoted that idea of Memorial Day as the national holiday. At the time, Logan headed the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of Union soldiers, and proclaimed May 30, 1868 as a day of remembrance.
Originally known as Declaration Day and first celebrated 143 years ago on May 30, 1868, it was created to honor Civil War soldiers who were killed in action. Veterans and other Declaration Day participants gathered at Arlington National Cemetery to decorate graves.


It's unclear where the tradition of decorating graves came from, but several towns in United States claim to have created it. In 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson actually settled the issue declaring that Waterloo, N.Y., first celebrated a local Memorial Day on May 5, 1866, and carried on the tradition of closing the town and decorating graves annually.
Starting with World War I, it became a day to recognize fallen American soldiers from all armed conflicts. In 1971, Congress declared that Memorial Day be an officially recognized holiday to take place on the last Monday of May every year.

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