Memorial Day's link to Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — To understand the history of Memorial Day, you must understand the grief experienced by hundreds of thousands of families in the wake of the Civil War, both nationally and locally.
"This region contributed almost 25,000 soldiers to the Civil War," said Michael Krause, curator and historian at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall and Museum in Pittsburgh. "It was 24,490 some odd soldiers just from Allegheny County. And of all those men to have served from here, there were about 4,000 casualties. Casualties being killed in battle, died of diseases, died of wounds or disappeared or were gone."
Even before the war was over, traditions of decorating the graves of the fallen started popping up in communities around the country. But it wasn't until the late 1860s that a national Decoration Day was proposed, and this is largely thanks to John Logan, a former Union general.
"After the war, an organization was born in 1866 and 1867 that brought veterans together," said Krause. "It would grow into a major national organization called the Grand Army of the Republic. Logan was its first commander and chief. So Logan makes an order in the Grand Army of the Republic, order number 11, to make May 30 Decoration Day to honor the graves of the fallen soldiers."
Decoration Day eventually became known as Memorial Day and was moved to the last Monday in May.
The Grand Army of the Republic not only helped bring about the holiday that we all now know, but it was the driving force behind the construction of Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall and Museum in Pittsburgh in the early 1900s.
"Some towns chose large monuments, some towns chose parks. Pittsburgh chose to build a memorial hall," said Krause. "And this became the meeting place for 28 Grand Army of the Republic posts that had one time been all around the county, but now they met here."
Since the Civil War, Soldiers and Sailors has passed the baton from the veterans of the Civil War to veterans of every conflict to come after. All those who have served are remembered on Memorial Day with displays, artifacts and archives that are open to the public.
While the building stands proudly every day, Soldiers and Sailors stands a little taller on Memorial Day.