Memorial Day has been celebrated in the United States since 1868 when it was officially proclaimed on May 5, 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic. Memorial Day was first observed on May 30, 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. Memorial Day was then observed on May 30th each year until 1971. Memorial Day has since then been observed on the last Monday of May after the National Holiday Act of 1971 was passed by congress. This Act was passed to allow for a three day holiday weekend each year for Memorial Day.
The Grand Rapids National Weather Service dug through the archives for the historical Memorial Day weather. They found the dates that Memorial Day has been observed each year. They then researched the data for each Memorial Day, and found the warmest maximum temperatures, coldest minimum temperatures, and the wettest days for Grand Rapids. Period of record for Grand Rapids is 1897-2008, since records do not go back to 1868.
I looked at the historical weather dating back to 1971 and added a few more details on the average weather for the holiday. See the slideshow on the left.
This Memorial Day will be warmer than average. Look for Monday morning lows in the mid to upper 50s and highs in the low 80s inland with 70s at the lakeshore. It will be a mostly sunny holiday with a light breeze from the southwest. A few showers and thundershowers possible Monday afternoon, but don’t change any plans. Just be prepared to head inside if a storm approaches.
The slide show on the left has a few weather forecast maps for Memorial Day.
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