The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1891-05-29
ORIGIN OF THE DAY
How the Observance of Memorial Day
Was Suggested

How the Observance Of Memorial Day
Was Suggested.
The following letter, originally sent
to the New York Tribune from Wash.
ington by Junius Simons, will not be
uninteresting at this time:
As one knowing the facts, permit
me to say that the credit of first sug-
costing Memorial Day. belongs to
Mrs. Henry S. Kimball, of West
PhiIadelphia, Pa. The suggestion
was made by her in 1868 to General
John A. Logan, then commandment
chief of the Grand Army of the Re-
public.
Mr.. aud Mrs. Kimball were old
friends of General Logan. On their
return home from a southern tour
Mrs. Kimball wrote to General Logan
stating that she had particularly no.
ticed the southern women decorating
the graves of their dead fallen i'm bat
tie, and suggested to him that, as the
commander-in-chief of the Grand Ar
my of the Republic, he should have
our heroic soldiers, whose lonely
graves were many, scattered and un-
marked, Remembered in the same
beautiful way. The General wa.
deeply impressed with the idea. Soon
afterward he wrote to Mrs. Kimball
thanking her for the suggestion and
stating that he felt that such a touch
ing tribute to his dead comrades
would undoubtedly meet with general
favor.
After carefully rejecting upon how
he should give the matter practical
shape he stated his ideas to General
Chapman, of the Grand Army of the
Republic staff, and requested him to
formulate them in an order. This Or
der, modified and enlarged by Gen.
eral Logan himself, was issued to the
Grand Army of the Republic as "Or-
der No. H." and May 80, 1868, was
named as the'day it should go into eff
feet. The order was generally we'll
received throughout the country, and
practically obeyed by the Grand Ar
my of the Republic, greatly to GEN.
ersl Logan's satisfaction, as evidenced
in the following letter to Mrs. Kim
ball, dated Washington, July 8, 1865:
My DEAR FRIExD-It is very gratifying to me
to hear, as l do day after day, from my friends
observe the custom is beautiful one. and lam
confident that it will not only never pass away
from the recollection of the American people,
but will more deeply ingraft itself in their
hearts, and each returning anniversary of sd
cred decoration will increase in impressive de-
yntion to our patriot dead; and the crowns we
weave for them of never fading laurel and the
beautiful flowers strewn over their graves
give birth to sentiments of love and OF honor
which bind the past, the present and the future
in one continuous chain Of admiration that the
life and service of even the humblest private
n ha fnr0ntfnn
JOHN A. LOGAN.
was clerk at the house Of repre-
and General LOgan's pri-
vate secretary at the time, and saw
all the correspondence relating to the
matter, heard General Logan tell his
friends and other callers that he was
indebted to Mrs. Kimball for the |
suggestion to decorate our soldiers
graves, saw him hand them Mrs. KIM |
balls letter on the subject to read, |
and heard General Logan state to
General Chapman his views and wish
es, out of which "Order No. IL" grew,
and during the presidential canvass
Of that year, Oh which went with |
him, he received many encomiums
wherever he went for the Inauguration
Of Memorial Day, and he never re-
trained from giving Mrs. Kimball full
'redit for the idea, feeling quite con-
.ent and appreciative for the share
If honor that naturally and properly
lowed to him for putting it into prac-
ical and permanent operation.
Since then Memorial Day has silent
V matured into tender and welcome
:ustom throughout our land, and has
additionally endeared to the hearts
# the people the memory of that
.reat hearted, brave and brilliant
older, orator aud statesman, John
!. Logan,