The Southern Roots of Memorial Day

Very interesting article about the real origin of “Memorial Day” at the Institute for Southern Studies…

Shows South Carolina wasn’t always as demented as it is today….

Year in which former slaves in Charleston, S.C. held a funeral procession to honor Union soldiers who died in a local Confederate prison camp: 1865

Number of people who took part in the May 1 procession, called Decoration Day, held after the freedmen dug individual graves for the soldiers (in photo), who had been buried en masse: nearly 10,000

Number of African-American children who marched past the graves, strewing flowers and softly singing “John Brown’s Body” and “The Star-Spangled Banner”: 2,800

MORE:   ISS – INSTITUTE INDEX: The Southern roots of Memorial Day.