Veterans Day
Today- I sit here with bit of Writers block. Maybe I sit here with it do to the fact that I have to go to work in just a few hours instead of spending it with my SUVCW Brothers, or maybe, and more likely, it's because I haven't had anywhere near coffee! Maybe I should go get some hardtack and have it with my coffee.... well, yea I probably wont go that far.
I want to take a few moments out of your day to share not only the Definition of Veterans day and the History behind it at the end of this blog, but I want to share, and honor some of those veterans that fought for the honor of Indiana and our preservation of our Union.
These Men in their GAR uniforms, are not only Veterans of the Civil War, but they were leaders in the Community. They were Postmasters, Mayors, Council Men, Business Men, Police Men, Firemen, Doctors, Husbands, Fathers, Brothers, Sons-just ordinary men, that believed in 1 country, 1 unified nation, believed in it so much that they were willing to give their life for that cause.
These Men, but are a handful of the nearly 600 that are buried here and but a fraction of the nearly 1000 from Porter County Indiana that Served. If we Look at NW Indiana, that figure is more like 5000. 5000 men took up arms, and traveled by horse, train, and marching thousands of miles to fight to keep our Union Together. They left their Wives, Children, Mothers- Family and Friends for something bigger than most of us could ever imagine imagine- the same reason that Men and Women take the oath today- HONOR and DUTY.
It was only fitting, that some 32 years after that first shot, our Chaplain Brown GAR Boys stepped foot into Memorial Hall for the First time- November 11th, 1893; Veterans Day right? Well not quite- Veterans Day wouldn't come about until 1919.
But for our Boys in Blue, this building was just a small token of what they could give back to the county. Yes- they gave once more, they wanted a building that could serve the community, not a monument that was just a big hunk of stone, but a living memorial to what they did on that battlefield-took care of their brothers, stood and died for their communities. A Monument to what their families went through.
So, as you are out and about today. As you are off shopping at Walmart, or having a beer at your favorite Watering Hole, take a moment to remember- while all gave some, some gave all.
History of Veterans Day
World War I – known at the time as “The Great War” - officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”
Soldiers of the 353rd Infantry near a church at Stenay, Meuse in France, wait for the end of hostilities. This photo was taken at 10:58 a.m., on November 11, 1918, two minutes before the armistice ending World War I went into effect
In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: "To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…"
The original concept for the celebration was for a day observed with parades and public meetings and a brief suspension of business beginning at 11:00 a.m.
The United States Congress officially recognized the end of World War I when it passed a concurrent resolution on June 4, 1926, with these words:
Whereas the 11th of November 1918, marked the cessation of the most destructive, sanguinary, and far reaching war in human annals and the resumption by the people of the United States of peaceful relations with other nations, which we hope may never again be severed, and
Whereas it is fitting that the recurring anniversary of this date should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations; and
Whereas the legislatures of twenty-seven of our States have already declared November 11 to be a legal holiday: Therefore be it Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), that the President of the United States is requested to issue a proclamation calling upon the officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on November 11 and inviting the people of the United States to observe the day in schools and churches, or other suitable places, with appropriate ceremonies of friendly relations with all other peoples. (https://www.va.gov/opa/vetsday/vetdayhistory.asp)
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