Confederate Memorial Day in United States

The Confederate flag, pictured above, is remembered on Confederate Memorial Day, also known as Confederate Heroes Day. ©iStockphoto.com/Dan Brandenburg

What do people do?

A range of events are organized on and around Confederate Memorial Day. The Main Library of the University of Georgia marks the occasion by publicly displaying the original Constitution of the Confederate States of America.

Other observances include:

• Ceremonies to place flags and wreaths on the graves of Confederate soldiers and memorials to them.
• Church services.
• Re-enactments (in historical costume) of battles and events from the Civil War.
• Displays of Civil War relics.

However, this type of observance is controversial, as some see it as glorifying a culture and way of life that could only exist because of the work carried out by slaves.

Public life

Confederate Memorial Day is a state holiday in Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Mississippi on the fourth Monday in April. It is a state holiday in South Carolina and North Carolina on May 10, although in 2008 it falls on May 9 in South Carolina because, by law, if it falls on Saturday then the Friday preceding is a public holiday. If it falls on Sunday, the following Monday is a public holiday. In North Carolina, the Monday following is a public holiday if Confederate Memorial Day falls on Sunday.

If Confederate Memorial Day falls on Sunday in North Carolina, the following Monday is a public holiday. Confederate Memorial Day is known as Confederate Heroes Day in Texas. It is held on January 19 each year. Only one day off is given to workers if it coincides with Martin Luther King Day.

In these areas, state offices and schools are generally closed. However, Confederate Memorial Day is not a federal holiday and federal offices may be open. Stores and other businesses may be open or closed according to local custom. Public transit services may operate to their normal or reduced schedules. There may be some minor road closures or congestion around war memorials or important battlegrounds.

Background

Between 1861 and 1865, there was a war between the Union and the Confederate States of America. As slavery disappeared from the northern states, but remained viable in the south, two very different ways of life arose in these sections, according to the US Department of the Interior’s National Park Service. Compromises regarding slavery, especially its extension to the new western territories, became more difficult to achieve. Social, political and economic power was at stake for both the north and the south.

The divisions began in 1860 when Abraham Lincoln, who opposed slavery, was elected as president of the United States. Seven states in the south declared their secession from the United States before he took office. Southern states maintained various concerns regarding political ideals, property and homes, protection for their families, and economic loss.

The actual war started on April 12, 1861, at Fort Sumter in South Carolina. The last cease-fire was signed at Fort Towson, Oklahoma, on June 23, 1865, although the naval forces on the CSS Shenandoah did not surrender until November 4, 1865 in Liverpool, Great Britain. It is estimated that more than 600,000 soldiers died during the American Civil War and that about 260,000 of these were Confederates. In addition, an unknown number of civilians died in the hostilities.

Those who died fighting for the Confederate States during the American Civil War are remembered on other dates in some states. In Arkansas and Texas, there are joint celebrations of the birthdays of Robert E. Lee (a general in the Confederate army) and Martin Luther King on the third Monday in January. In Texas, this is sometimes known as Confederate Heroes Day. In Kentucky, Louisiana and Tennessee, the birthday of Jefferson Davis (the only President of the Confederate States of America) on June 3, 1808, is observed.

In North and South Carolina, May 10 marks the anniversaries of the death of Thomas Jonathan 'Stonewall' Jackson (a general in the Confederate army) in 1863 and the capture of Jefferson Davis in 1865. In Pennsylvania, the organization known as the Sons of Confederate Veterans commemorates those who died while fighting for the Confederates.  In Virginia, the lives of Confederate soldiers are honored on Memorial Day on the last Monday in May. Confederate Memorial Day was first observed in a number of areas in or just after 1866.

Confederate Memorial Day Observances

Related holidays

• Memorial Day–Monday, May 25, 2009
• Peace Officers Memorial Day–Friday, May 15, 2009
• Lee Jackson Day–Friday, January 16, 2009
• Jefferson Davis Birthday–Monday, June 1, 2009, Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Other holidays in May 2009 in United States

• Law Day (Friday, May 1, 2009)
• Loyalty Day (Friday, May 1, 2009)
• World Press Freedom Day (Sunday, May 3, 2009)
• Rhode Island Independence Day (Monday, May 4, 2009)
• Cinco de Mayo (Tuesday, May 5, 2009)
• National Day of Prayer (Thursday, May 7, 2009)
• Truman Day (Friday, May 8, 2009)
• Mother's Day (Sunday, May 10, 2009)
• Lag B'Omer (Tuesday, May 12, 2009)
• Peace Officers Memorial Day (Friday, May 15, 2009)
• International Day of Families (Friday, May 15, 2009)
• National Defense Transportation Day (Friday, May 15, 2009)
• World Information Society Day (Sunday, May 17, 2009)
• World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development (Thursday, May 21, 2009)
• Ascension Day (Thursday, May 21, 2009)
• National Maritime Day (Friday, May 22, 2009)
• International Day for Biological Diversity (Friday, May 22, 2009)
• Memorial Day (Monday, May 25, 2009)
• African Liberation Day (Monday, May 25, 2009)
• Shavuot (Friday, May 29, 2009)
• Pentecost (Sunday, May 31, 2009)

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