Memorial Day Parade The Highlight Of Weekend Events In Newtown

NEWTOWN, PA — The upcoming Newtown Memorial Day Parade is part of a nearly 160-year tradition that pays tribute to military personnel who lost their lives in service to their country.

The parade, which takes place on Monday, May 29 beginning at 9 a.m., is the highlight of the three-day Memorial Day Weekend — May 27-29 this year.

Organized by American Legion Post 440, the parade steps off from Newtown Commons West on the Newtown-Yardley Road. The parade will pause at the gravesite of Morell Smith inside the Newtown Cemetery. As it marches through town, the parade will also pause at the World War I monument in front of the Newtown Library Company for a wreath-laying ceremony and at the Newtown Borough Hall for speeches and music.

Several other events and parades are happening in town and nearby:

• The Newtown Historic Association presents a "A Tribute to Veterans" on Monday, May 29 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Newtown Historic Association's Callahan Research Center, 100 Mercer Street. Artifacts will be presented through the eyes of Newtown natives who fought for the nation's freedom. The display will feature more than 100 pictures of World War II soldiers collected by Mike Donovan, a past NHA member and history buff. Also on display will be letters written by the soldiers offering a glimpse into their private moments and allowing the public to experience those moments in their own words. New to the tribute will be more than 300 WWII military shoulder patches from the US Army, Army Air Force, Marines, Navy and Coast Guard. Represented will be a variety of battles that made up military campaigns across Europe and Asia. A special focus is provided through 12 Newtown natives and soldiers, not all of them coming home. For more information, CLICK HERE.

• Washington Crossing Historic Park (PA) will hold a Memorial Day observance on Sunday, May 28 at 1 p.m. at the gravesite of Continental soldiers located near the Thompson-Neely House, about two miles south of New Hope at the intersection of Route 32 and Aquetong Rd. (1638 River Road, New Hope). The observation will include a colonial color guard, a fife and drum corps, Revolutionary War reenactors, veterans, and other honored guests. During the ceremony, American flags will be placed on all of the graves. The gravesite marks the resting place of soldiers who died during the Continental army’s December 1776 encampment in Bucks County. Although no Americans were killed during the Delaware River crossing and the First Battle of Trenton, some soldiers succumbed to exposure, disease or previous injuries. Captain-Lieutenant Moore is the only veteran buried in this plot whose identity is known.

As the observance has changed over the years, many families also use Memorial Day as an occasion to visit Newtown cemeteries and leave flowers at the graves of family members, regardless of whether they served in the military.

Memorial Day Weekend is also the unofficial kickoff to summer in Newtown. Below are more ways to spend the weekend:

• A vintage baseball game will be played on Memorial Day, Monday, May 29 at Pickering Field at Jefferson Avenue and Chancellor Street in Newtown Borough. The game begins at 12 p.m. and is sponsored by the Newtown Athletic Association. The game is played in old-fashioned uniforms and by old-fashioned rules.

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.

(Photo by Jeff Werner)