Boalsburg is a quaint little village situated in Centre County, Pa., just off Route 322, in the picturesque foothills of the Alleghenies. It's only a dot on the map, and you as a casual driver might drive past it without even being aware that it is nestled there in the rolling valley beneath a coverlet of oaks and pines and cedars - were it not for a plain little marker by the side of the road: Boalsburg. An American Village - Birthplace of Memorial Day.

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service. There are many stories as to its actual beginnings, with over two dozen cities and towns laying claim to being the birthplace of Memorial Day. There is also evidence that organized women's groups in the South were decorating graves before the end of the Civil War: a hymn published in 1867, Kneel Where Our Loves are Sleeping, by Nella L. Sweet carried the dedication, To The Ladies of the South who are Decorating the Graves of the Confederate Dead.