Memorial Day, Monday, May 26, is a federal holiday to mourn and honor deceased men and women who served in the nation’s armed forces, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Always observed on the last Monday in May, it was originally called Decoration Day, with its origin following the end of the Civil War. In the late 1860s, there were tributes to the war’s dead held in various places both in the North and the South, with contesting claims as to which city was Memorial Day’s birthplace. (That includes a town in New York which was proclaimed as such by President Lyndon Johnson.)
However, there is no doubt to the origin of the holiday’s present name: Grand Army of the Republic Commander-in-Chief John A. Logan established May 30 as a time to decorate with flowers the graves of the war dead, formalizing the action with a “Memorial Day Order.”
Though Memorial Day is May 26, several communities in the Hudson Valley will be marking the day with events before then as well as on the actual day.
If you know of an event that is not listed, please email Hartriono B. Sastrowardoyo at hsastrowardoyo@gannett.com and the list will be updated.
Memorial Day events in the Lower Hudson Valley
May 22: The Town of Mamaroneck Fire Department, 205 Weaver St., will hold a Memorial Day ceremony at 6 p.m.
May 23: Westchester County will hold a Memorial Day Service starting at 11 a.m. at Lasdon Park, 2610 Route 35, Katonah. The event can be seen live at Facebook.com/westchestergov.
May 25: Mamaroneck and American Legion Post 90 will hold a ceremony at 11 a.m. at the post, 189 Prospect Ave. There will not be a parade along Mamaroneck Avenue this year because of a shortage of volunteers.
At noon the Rockland County Veterans Coordinating Council will host a memorial service at the Frederick Loescher Veterans Cemetery, 220 Brick Church Rd. Spring Valley.
A second memorial service will be held 1 p.m. at the Gary Onderdonk Veterans Memorial Cemetery located on the main campus of Rockland Community College, 175 College Road, Viola. After the ceremony at the cemetery, participants will walk down a short path to pay respects to Korean War veterans.
Memorial Day, May 26 observances and parades in Lower Hudson Valley
The following events will be held the day of Memorial Day, May 26:
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: What to know about Memorial Day 2025: Hudson Valley parades, observances and more
Reporting by Hartriono B. Sastrowardoyo, Rockland/Westchester Journal News / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
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