Decorating Memorial Day

Memorial Day was started by the Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R.) in 1868, just three years after the end of the US Civil War. It was also called Decoration Day because it was a day to decorate the graves of the fallen soldiers. Over time, the day has come honor all of our military service people.

Memorial Day, Ripley Cemetery in Litchfield, 1967

For well over one hundred years, Litchfield has continued the Memorial Day tradition. The earliest years saw a parade led by the Civil War veterans as they marched from the G.A.R. Hall to Ripley Cemetery. Among the parade participants were the veterans, Woman’s Relief Corps members, musicians, and the decorator girls. As the name implies, the girls were there to decorate the graves of the deceased veterans.

The girls would march or ride in the parade to the cemetery and then start to decorate the graves. For many years, the memorial program wouldn’t start until all of the graves had been decorated. Later, the ceremony would start before decorating was complete, possibly because there were more and more veteran graves to be decorated.

In the early years, the girls all dressed in white. Later, their clothing took on a more patriotic flair, as their outfits changed to red, white, and blue. Their dresses were often made out of bunting bought from the local stores and sewn by the girls and their mothers. The Museum has one of these bunting dresses from 1928 in our collection.

The decorator girls were started by Nick Eberts, a Civil War Veteran and member of the G.A.R. His daughter Nona was one of the early decorators. In later years, she helped to drill the girls as they prepared for the big day.

Eberts is credited with organizing the girls until his death in 1929 at the age of 80. The tradition came to an end the following year. That is until 1985, when a new generation of girls was given the honor to once again decorate the graves of Meeker County’s veterans. 1985 marked the 100th anniversary of Litchfield’s G.A.R. Hall, and with a nudge from the Hall, the tradition made a reappearance. Nine Girl Scouts served as “flag girls” and dressed in patriotic dresses.

Decorator Girls getting ready to decorate the cemetery, Memorial Day c. 1880s

While the decorator girls no longer adorn the Civil War graves today, the Museum and G.A.R. Hall does continue to honor the Memorial tradition at Ripley Cemetery and other cemeteries in the area. Each year, our volunteers place G.A.R. markers and flags on the Civil War graves. A special thanks to those volunteers and to the Litchfield Masons Golden Fleece Lodge # 89 for their past donation that allowed the G.A.R. Hall to replace some of our missing and damaged grave markers.

In addition, the Meeker County Museum is honored to continue the G.A.R.’s tradition of Memorial Day. Join us for our annual Memorial Day Picnic held at the Litchfield Opera House on Monday, May 26. Lunch will be served from 11:00 to 1:30. The Museum and G.A.R. Hall will be open from 11:00 to 2:00.