Memorial Day

May 26, 2008

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Profile America — Monday, May 26th. Today is Memorial Day. For some people, it’s the start of the summer season and a time for family gatherings and sporting events. But the true meaning of the day is underlined by the continuing sacrifices made by U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. The first official observance of Memorial Day was on May 30, 1868, ordered by General John Logan, when flowers were placed on the graves of both Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. From the Civil War through Vietnam, some 566,000 U.S. service personnel died in combat, more than half of them in World War II. Currently, there are nearly 1.4 million men and women on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces. You can find these and more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau online at <www.census.gov>.

Sources: Chase's Calendar of Events 2008, p. 285
Statistical Abstract of the United States 2008, t. 501
http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2008edition.html