What's the history of Memorial Day?

Memorial Day, observed the last Monday in May each year, is a holiday that pays tribute to American military members who have died in service to the U.S.

But the holiday hasn’t always paid tribute to all fallen service members, and it hasn’t always been called Memorial Day.

When the first national celebration of the modern Memorial Day holiday took place at Arlington National Cemetery on May 30, 1868, the holiday was called Decoration Day.

The first observance of Decoration Day honored soldiers who died in the Civil War, the deadliest war in American history. The U.S. Army Airborne and Special Operations Museum says General John Logan, leader of an organization for Northern Civil War veterans, called for a nationwide day of remembrance. He chose May 30 because it wasn’t the anniversary of any Civil War battle.