Confederate Memorial Day

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Not to be confused with Memorial Day.

Confederate Memorial Day
Beech-Grove-Confederate-Cemetery-grave-tn1.jpg
Standard government headstone for unknown Confederate soldier, Beechgrove, Tennessee
Also calledConfederate Heroes Day, Confederate Decoration Day
Observed bySouthern states (United States)
TypeCultural
ObservancesRemembrance of Confederate soldiers who died rebelling against the Union
Date
  • January 19 (TX)
  • Fourth Monday in
    April (AL, FL)
  • Last Monday in April (MS)
  • May 10 (NC, SC)
  • June 3 (KY, TN)
Frequencyannual
First timeApril 26, 1866
(155 years ago) (1866-04-26)
Related to

Confederate Memorial Day (called Confederate Heroes Day in Texas and Florida, and Confederate Decoration Day in Tennessee) is a cultural holiday observed in several Southern U.S. states on various dates since the end of the Civil War to remember the estimated 258,000 Confederate soldiers who died rebelling against the Union.[1]

It is an official state holiday in Alabama, Mississippi, and South Carolina; while it is commemorated in Kentucky, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, and Tennessee.[2][3][4][5][6][7] It was also formerly recognized in Georgia, Louisiana, and Virginia.[8] Several states celebrate it on or near April 26, when the last major Confederate field army surrendered at Bennett Place, North Carolina in 1865.[9]

Origins[]

Confederate Memorial Day observance in front of the Monument to Confederate Dead, Arlington National Cemetery, on June 8, 2014

In the spring of 1866 the Ladies Memorial Association of Columbus, Georgia, passed a resolution to set aside one day annually to memorialize the Confederate war dead. Mary Ann Williams, the association secretary, was directed to pen a letter inviting ladies associations in every former Confederate state to join them in the observance.[10] Their invitation was written in March 1866 and sent to all of the principal cities in the former Confederacy, including Atlanta;[11] Macon;[12] Montgomery; Memphis; Richmond; St. Louis; Alexandria; Columbia;[13] and New Orleans, as well as smaller towns like Staunton, Virginia;[14] Anderson, South Carolina;[15] and Wilmington, North Carolina.[16] The actual date for the holiday was selected by Elizabeth Rutherford Ellis.[17] She chose April 26, the first anniversary of Confederate General Johnston's surrender to Union Major General Sherman at Bennett Place. For many in the Confederacy, that date in 1865 marked the end of the Civil War.[10]

In their book, The Genesis of the Memorial Day Holiday in America, Bellware and Gardiner assert that the national Memorial Day holiday is a direct offshoot of the observance begun by the Ladies Memorial Association of Columbus, Georgia in 1866. In a few places, most notably Columbus, Mississippi[18] and Macon, Georgia,[19] Union graves were decorated during the first observance. The day was even referred to as Memorial Day by The Baltimore Sun on May 8, 1866, after the ladies organization that started it. The name Confederate Memorial Day was not used until the Northern observance was initiated in 1868.[20]

While initially cool to the idea of a Northern version of the holiday, General John A. Logan was eventually won over. His General Order No. 11, issued May 5, 1868, commanded the posts of Grand Army of the Republic to strew flowers on the graves of Union soldiers. The Grand Army of the Republic eventually adopted the name Memorial Day at their national encampment in 1882.[21]

Many theories have been offered as to how Logan became aware of the former Confederate tradition he imitated in 1868. In her autobiography, his wife claims she told him about it after a trip to Virginia in the spring of that year.[22] His secretary and his adjutant also claim they told him about it. John Murray of Waterloo, New York, claims it was he who inspired Logan in 1868. Bellware and Gardiner, however, offer proof that Logan was aware of the Southern tributes long before any of them had a chance to mention it to him.[23] In a speech to veterans in Salem, Illinois, on July 4, 1866, Logan referred to the various dates of observance adopted in the South for the practice saying "…traitors in the South have their gatherings day after day, to strew garlands of flowers upon the graves of Rebel soldiers..."[24]

The first official celebration as a public holiday occurred in 1874, following a proclamation by the Georgia legislature.[25] By 1916, ten states celebrated it, on June 3, the birthday of CSA President Jefferson Davis.[25] Other states chose late April dates, or May 10, commemorating Davis' capture.[25]

Statutory holidays[]

Confederate Memorial Day is a statutory holiday in Alabama on the fourth Monday in April, in Mississippi on the final Monday in April, and in South Carolina on May 10.[26][27][28][29] In all of these states, state offices are closed on this day.

In Georgia, the fourth Monday in April was formerly celebrated as Confederate Memorial Day, but beginning in 2016, in response to the Charleston church shooting, the names of Confederate Memorial Day and Robert E. Lee's Birthday were struck from the state calendar and the statutory holidays were designated simply as "state holidays."[30] Florida also continues to officially designate Confederate Memorial Day on the fourth Monday in April, although state offices remain open.[31]

North Carolina also designates the holiday on May 10, although state offices remain open and localities may choose whether to observe it.[32][33]

In Tennessee, an unofficial Confederate Decoration Day is observed on June 3.[5]

Texas[]

In Texas, Robert E. Lee's birthday (January 19th) was made a state holiday in 1931.[34] In 1973, "Lee Day" was renamed "Confederate Heroes Day".[35] The official state description of the holiday states it is held "in honor of Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and other Confederate heroes;".[35] State offices remain open but employees may have an optional day off.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Boyer, Paul S., ed. (2001). The Oxford Companion to United States History. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 132. ISBN 0-19-508209-5.
  2. ^ "Code of Laws – Title 53 – Chapter 5 – Legal Holidays". www.scstatehouse.gov. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  3. ^ "Confederate Memorial Day still recognized in Alabama and across the South". AL.com. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  4. ^ "Alabama Code Title 1. General Provisions § 1-3-8". Findlaw. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b Allison, Natalie (July 12, 2019). "Gov. Bill Lee Signs Nathan Bedford Forrest Day Proclamation, Is Not Considering Law Change." The Tennessean (Tennessean.com). Retrieved July 12, 2019.
  6. ^ Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board (April 20, 2021). "Pandering to the base: Florida protects Confederate holidays, makes felons of protesters – Editorial". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  7. ^ Reimann, Nicholas (April 26, 2021). "State Offices Close For 'Confederate Memorial Day' In Alabama And Mississippi – Here's Why It's (Still) An Official Holiday There". Forbes. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  8. ^ Bulletin of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. Washington, DC: United States Government Publishing Office. 1925. p. 68.
  9. ^ Woolf, Henry Bosley, ed. (1976). Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary. Springfield, Massachusetts: G. & C. Merriam Co. p. 236. ISBN 0-87779-338-7. OL 5207141M.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b Lucian Lamar Knight (1914). "Georgia's Landmarks, Memorials, and Legends ...: Under the code duello ..." Books.google.com. p. 156. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  11. ^ "The Soldiers' Graves". Digital Library of Georgia. Atlanta Intelligencer. March 21, 1866. p. 2. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  12. ^ ""Woman's Honor to the Gallant Dead," Macon Telegraph, March 26, 1866, p. 5". Digital Library of Georgia. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  13. ^ ""In Memory of the Confederate Dead," Daily Phoenix, Columbia, SC, April 4, 1866, p. 2". Library of Congress. Retrieved February 26, 2017.
  14. ^ ""The Southern Dead," Staunton Spectator, Staunton, VA, March 27, 1866 p.1". Library of Congress. Retrieved February 26, 2017.
  15. ^ ""The Southern Dead," Anderson Intelligencer, Anderson Court House, SC, March 29, 1866, p.1". Library of Congress. Retrieved February 26, 2017.
  16. ^ ""In Memory of the Confederate Dead," Wilmington Journal, Wilmington, NC, April 5, 1866, p.1". Library of Congress. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
  17. ^ "Lizzie Rutherford (1833–1873) | New Georgia Encyclopedia". Georgiaencyclopedia.org. 2004. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  18. ^ ""Confederate Soldiers' Dead," Louisiana Democrat, July 18, 1866". Library of Congress. July 18, 1866. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
  19. ^ "Will They Notice This Touching Tribute". Library of Congress. Columbus, OH: Ohio Statesman. May 4, 1866. p. 2. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
  20. ^ Bellware, Daniel (2014). The Genesis of the Memorial Day Holiday in America. Columbus, GA: Columbus State University. p. 87. ISBN 9780692292259.
  21. ^ Beath, Robert B. (1884). The Grand Army Blue-Book Containing the Rules and Regulations of the Grand Army of the Republic and Decisions and Opinions Thereon . Philadelphia: Grand Army of the Republic. p. 118. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
  22. ^ Logan, Mrs. John A. (1913). "Logan, Mrs. John A., Reminiscences of a Soldier's Wife, C. Scribner sons, 1913, p. 243". Google Books. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
  23. ^ Bellware, Daniel (2014). The Genesis of the Memorial Day Holiday in America. Columbus, GA: Columbus State University. p. 144. ISBN 9780692292259.
  24. ^ "Illinois – Gen. Logan on Reconstruction," New York Tribune July 14, 1866 p. 5". Library of Congress. July 14, 1866. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  25. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Confederate Memorial Day in Georgia". GeorgiaInfo. University of Georgia. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  26. ^ "Confederate Memorial Day in the United States". time and date.com. Time and Date AS. n.d. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
  27. ^ "Confederate Memorial Day still recognized in Alabama and across the South". Alabama Media Group. The Associated Press. April 27, 2015.
  28. ^ "Confederate Memorial Day". Sos.ms.gov. April 27, 2015. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  29. ^ "Code of Laws - Title 53 - Chapter 5 - Legal Holidays". www.scstatehouse.gov.
  30. ^ "Why Monday is no longer Confederate Memorial Day in Georgia". April 23, 2018. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  31. ^ staff, News4Jax (April 26, 2021). "Confederate Memorial Day remains legal holiday in Florida, other southern states". WJXT.
  32. ^ "Do Some US States Observe 'Confederate Memorial Day'?". Snopes.com.
  33. ^ Merelli, Annalisa (May 10, 2018). "What the controversial Confederate Memorial Day would be in other countries". Quartz.
  34. ^ "TEXAS CONFEDERATE HEROES DAY AND CONFEDERATE MEMORIAL DAY" (PDF). Texas Division United Daughters of the Confederacy. “House Bill 126, 42nd Legislature Regular Session. Chapter 8. Approved and Effective January 30, 1931 as Robert E. Lee's Birthday.; Senate Bill 60, 63rd Legislature Regular Session. Chapter 221. Approved June 1, 1973 and Effective August 27, 1973 as Confederate Heroes Day. This bill deleted June 3rd as a holiday for Jefferson Davis' birthday and combined the two into Confederate Heroes Day.”
  35. ^ Jump up to: a b "What is Confederate Heroes Day and why do Texans still celebrate it today?". KSAT - Omne - Graham Media Group. January 19, 2021.

Further reading[]

External links[]

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