This year the Wilmington Memorial Day Parade, the oldest continuously held parade in the country, celebrated its 158th consecutive observance on May 30, 2025. The parade began on Delaware avenue at the foot of Rockford Park and ended at the Soldiers and Sailors Monument at Delaware Avenue and N. Broom Street, Wilmington DE 19806 where an observance was held. The monument (https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp? was erected in 1870 to commemorate Delaware’s Patriotic Dead who sacrificed their Lives for their country during the Rebellion of 1861 -65.
The Wilmington Memorial Day Parade is the oldest continuously held parade in the country celebrated on Memorial day. The 158th consecutive observance was held on May 30, 2025.
The Program included a reading of Gen. John Logan's General Order No. 11 by SUVCW Appomattox Camp No. 2 former Camp Commander, James Hanby. General order No. 11 established "Decoration Day" (later renamed Memorial Day) on May 30, 1868.
The keynote speaker for the event was Sean Barney, a former Marine and Iraq War veteran, who gave a heartfelt and personal account of the meaning of Memorial Day to him. In May 2006 he was wounded by an enemy sniper and lost his best friend in Fallujah. Sean recovered from his wounds and received the Purple Heart.
SUVCW Appomattox Camp No. 2, Secretary/Treasurer Ken Chew, who has volunteered as Secretary for the Wilmington Parade Committee for years, received the Wilmington Memorial Day Committee's McMullin/Anderson Award "for his long standing commitment and dedication to the observance of Memorial Day."
Flowers provided by various groups, including SUVCW Appomattox Camp No. 2, were placed at the base of the Soldiers and Sailors Monument by Army JROTC cadets from Mount Pleasant High School.
Wilmington's Soldiers and Sailors Monument The monument (https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp? was erected in 1870 to commemorate Delaware’s Patriotic Dead who sacrificed their Lives for their country during the Rebellion of 1861 -65. The monument was dedicated in 1871 as a part of Memorial Day activities.
Memorial day was established in 1868 following General Logan's General Order 11 calling for a national day of remembrance for all the fallen soldiers and sailors in the Civil War.
The inscription on the monument reads:
"In Commemoration of Delaware’s
Patriotic Dead who Sacrificed
Their Lives for their country
During the Rebellion of 1861 -65."
Mount Salem Cemetery is the final resting place for over 90 Civil War veterans. Every May around Memorial Day we conduct a solemn observance to commemorate the service of these veterans. The 14 page downloadable PDF below provides detailed information about each of the veterans.
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