Decoration Day: Honoring the Fallen

by Kimberly Keagan
May 3, 2025

Long before backyard barbecues and three-day weekends, Memorial Day—known then as Decoration Day—was a quieter, more solemn occasion. In the 1890s, families across the United States gathered not at sales or beaches, but in cemeteries, bringing armfuls of lilacs, roses, and peonies to decorate the graves of fallen soldiers.

It was a day for honoring sacrifice. For remembering. For mourning.

Originally observed after the Civil War, Decoration Day was set aside for placing flowers on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers alike. By the 1890s, the tradition had become part of the American rhythm of spring, particularly for those who had lived through the nation's most painful conflict.

In small towns and growing cities alike, parades wound their way toward local cemeteries. Veterans of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) marched in uniform, some holding faded flags, others walking with canes or leaning on the arms of comrades. Children often scattered petals along the procession route.

Church bells rang. Bugles sounded. Ministers offered prayers. Women’s auxiliaries laid wreaths with gloved hands. And everywhere, there were flowers—tucked into crevices of old headstones and woven into the fences around soldiers’ plots.

For many, it was also a day to visit family graves beyond the battlefield. In an era before embalming was common or cemeteries widely commercialized, Decoration Day was deeply personal. People cleaned headstones, trimmed the grass by hand, and left notes or tokens.

As we enter this season of remembrance, may we take a moment to do the same. To remember those who came before us, who fought, who loved, who endured.


(Photo credits: Library of Congress, RelicRecord.com, The Nebraska State Historical Society)