Memorial Day Weekend 2023: Things To Do In Newton

NEWTON, MA — The upcoming Memorial Day service/parade in Newton is part of a nearly 160-year tradition that pays tribute to military personnel who lost their lives in service to their country.

The Newton Memorial Day Ceremony at 9 a.m. on Sunday, May 28 at Forte Park and the parade at 3 p.m. at Newton North High School is the highlight of the three-day Memorial Day Weekend — May 27-29 this year.

The ceremony begins with an observance and placement of wreaths at the bridges and monuments at Forte Park at 9:00 AM, then continues on to the American Legion Post 440 and then to the bridges that span the Mass Pike.

All Newton veterans are also invited to march in this year’s Memorial Day Parade. The bands, vendors and all participants will begin gathering at 2:15 p.m. at Newton North High School to take part in this year’s parade. The parade starts promptly at 3:00 p.m. at Newton North High School and moves down Walnut Street to Watertown Street, ending at the reviewing stand in front of Coletti-Magni Park in Nonantum.

Mayor Ruthanne Fuller and the city will pause to reflect and pay respect to Newton veterans at the Newton Cemetery promptly at 10:00 a.m.

The Memorial Day Observance will begin rain or shine at 10:00 a.m. starting at the first veterans burial lot located on Lake Street. There will be brief remarks from mayor Ruthanne Fuller, the city council designee, the respective veteran organizations present, the chaplain and the director of Veterans’ Services Seth Bai. The ceremony will then move to the other veterans’ lots on Willow Street, followed by the third and final lot at the back of the cemetery on Birch Street.

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

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.