Following the Civil War, many communities set aside one day to honor those who lost their life in this nation’s worst war. As time went on, many of the celebrations were merged into one Decoration Day. The first day proclaimed as “Memorial Day” was in 1862. Decoration Day was recognized as a federal holiday beginning in 1868 but was not celebrated in the south. Many southern states celebrated Confederate Memorial Day on different dates.
Memorial Day was not widely recognized until after World War II.
Memorial Day was traditionally celebrated on May 30. When the Uniform Holidays Bill (sometimes referred to as the “Monday Holliday Act”) came into effect in 1971, Memorial Day was moved to the last Monday in May.
With overseas wars on two fronts and remembering all of the past conflicts, I would like to take this opportunity to honor the memory of all who gave the ultimate sacrifice for the country. I recognize that without their sacrifice I would not have the freedom to write this blog.
To honor their service, I re-introduce the 2005 Marine Corps 230th Anniversary Commemorative Silver Dollar. The obverse features the National Marine Corps War Memorial (sometimes referred to as the “Iwo Jima Memorial&rdquo) and the reverse has the Marine Corps emblem. This powerful design allowed the US Mint to capture the 2007 Coin of the Year Award.
Between now and Monday, please make sure that you take at least one moment to remember those brave men and women.
Images courtesy of the US Mint.
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