Question: What U.S. village is known as “the birthplace of Memorial Day”?
Answer: Waterloo, NY, celebrated the first Memorial Day on May 5, 1866, a year after the end of the Civil War. It was the brainchild of druggist Henry C. Welles, who partnered with Gen. John B. Murray, a war hero, to devise a plan to close all businesses and devote the day to honoring the dead. In 1966, Congress recognized Waterloo as the holiday’s birthplace.
