Monday, May 28 will mark the observance of Memorial Day. Originally it was known as Decoration Day, after the practice in the South of decorating the graves of soldiers who fought in the Civil War. In parts of the South, the day included the singing of hymns and “dinner on the ground,” the serving of foods on sheets or blankets spread on the ground.

Decoration Day was declared a holiday and first observed on May 30, 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers…