Memorial Day Weekend 2023: Events, Parades Around Gloucester Township

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — Gloucester Township will once again come together during the Memorial Day Ceremony, as communities throughout the United States honor military personnel who lost their lives in service to their country.

The township's ceremony and wreath-laying services run from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Memorial Day, which is May 29. Mayor David Mayer and Police Chief David Harkins will travel to eight veteran memorials before culminating the tribute with a service at Veterans Park.

Here's the schedule:

• 8 a.m. - American Legion Post 281
• 8:20 a.m. - Glendora V.F.W. Post 8714
• 8:40 a.m. - 9th Ave Monument, Glendora
• 9 a.m. - Blackwood V.F.W. 7927
• 9:20 a.m. – Harwan Park Monument
• 9:40 a.m. - Gloucester Township School
• 10 a.m. - Gloucester Township Community Park
• 10:15 a.m. - Erial Cemetery, Erial
• 11 a.m. – Veterans Memorial Park (1261 Chews Landing Rd.)

Below are some other events and parades nearby:

• Glassboro Memorial Day Parade: 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. May 29. See the parade route.
• Memorial Day Skate: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 29 at Millenium Skate World (1900 Carman St., Camden).
• Camden County's Memorial Day Ceremony: 10 a.m. May 29 on the Battleship NJ.
• Memorial Day Dedication Ceremonies in Haddon Heights: wreath-laying ceremony at 10 a.m., parade procession at 10:30 a.m., and a VFW-led wreath-dedication ceremony at 11 a.m. Find more info here.
• Memorial Day Ceremony in Cherry Hill: 10 a.m. May 29 at the Town Hall War Memorial (820 Mercer St.).

The history of Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, dates back to 1868, when Gen. John A. Logan called for a day of remembrance to honor the Northern lives lost amid battle during the Civil War that had ended just a few years earlier, according to History.com. As time passed, more and more people called it Memorial Day, and it became a federal holiday in 1971.

Waterloo, New York, is considered the birthplace of Memorial Day. The town’s observance on May 5, 1866, predated Logan’s call for a day of remembrance. Local businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers and flags.

Until World War I, the holiday honored only those soldiers who died while fighting for the Union in the War, as Southern states honored their war dead on a separate day. After the 116,000-plus American deaths in World War I, the tradition changed to remember all who have died while serving in the military.

Every year, a national moment of remembrance is held at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day. No matter where they are or what they’re doing, Americans are asked to pause for one minute in silence to remember military personnel who have given their lives in service to their country. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, the midday time was chosen because it’s a time when many Americans will be enjoying their freedoms on a national holiday.