In 1921, an unknown World War I
American soldier was buried in
Arlington National Cemetery. This
site, on a hillside overlooking the
Potomac River and the city of
Washington, D.C., became the
focal point of reverence for
America’s veterans.

Similar ceremonies occurred
earlier in England and France,
where an unknown soldier was
buried in each nation’s highest
place of honor (in England,
Westminster Abbey; in France, the
Arc de Triomphe). These
memorial gestures all took place
on November 11, giving universal
recognition to the celebrated ending of World War I
fighting at 11 am, November 11, 1918 (the 11th hour of
the 11th day of the 11th month). The day became known
as “Armistice Day.”

Armistice Day officially received its name in America
in 1926 through a Congressional resolution. It became a
national holiday 12 years later by similar Congressional
action. If the idealistic hope had been realized that
World War I was “the War to end all wars,” November 11
might still be called Armistice Day. But only a few years
after the holiday was proclaimed, war broke out in
Europe. Sixteen and one-half million Americans took
part. Four hundred seven thousand of them died in
service, more than 292,000 in battle.

Armistice Day Changed to

Honor All Veterans

The first celebration using the term Veterans Day
occurred in Birmingham, Alabama in 1947. Raymond
Weeks, a World War II veteran, organized “National
Veterans Day,” which included a parade and other
festivities, to honor all veterans. The event was held on
November 11, then designated Armistice Day. Later, U.S.
Representative Edward Rees of Kansas proposed a bill
that would change Armistice Day to Veterans Day. In
1954, Congress passed the bill that President Eisenhower
signed proclaiming November 11 as Veterans Day.
Raymond Weeks received the Presidential Citizens
Medal from President Reagan in November 1982.
Weeks’ local parade and ceremonies are now an annual
event celebrated nationwide.

On Memorial Day 1958, two more unidentified
American war dead were brought from overseas and
interred in the plaza beside the unknown soldier of
World War I. One was killed in World War II, the other
in the Korean War. In 1984, an unknown serviceman
from the Vietnam War was placed alongside the others.
The remains from Vietnam were exhumed May 14,
1998, identified as Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Joseph
Blassie, and removed for burial. To honor these men,
symbolic of all Americans who gave their lives in all
wars, an Army honor guard, the 3rd U.S. Infantry (The
Old Guard), keeps day and night vigil.

A law passed in 1968 changed the national
commemoration of Veterans Day to the fourth Monday
in October. It soon became apparent, however, that
November 11 was a date of historic significance to many
Americans. Therefore, in 1978, Congress returned the
observance to its traditional date.

National Ceremonies Held at

Arlington National Cemetery

The focal point for official national ceremonies for
Veterans Day continues to be the memorial
amphitheater built around the Tomb of the Unknowns.
At 11 am on November 11, a combined color guard
representing all military services executes “Present
Arms” at the tomb. The nation’s tribute to its war dead is
symbolized by the laying of a presidential wreath. The
bugler plays “taps.” The rest of the ceremony takes place
in the amphitheater.EK