I used to believe it was wrong, even disrespectful, to “celebrate” Memorial Day, the day that honors the roughly 1,308,468 men and women who died to create and preserve our nation and the liberties we enjoy (I also include in that number those who died of disease, accidents, and other causes). Who am I to take a day off to grill hot dogs, drink Carling Black Label, blare surf music, and have fun in “honor” of those who died protecting our nation and fighting communism overseas? It always struck me as tasteless.
That changed when a wiser man explained that those are exactly the things I should be doing. People died so I could be free to live my life as I choose, my friend said. Not living as I like would be the true insult.
Would you like it to sound more formal, more conversational, or more emotionally reflective?
My friend is right. However, I do not “celebrate” Memorial Day. I prefer to commemorate those who have died for our nation by freely living my life, which they paid for with theirs.
SHOT HEARD AROUND THE WORLD-O-RAMA! The first American to die for our country was Minuteman Captain Isaac Davis of Acton, Mass. His company was chosen to advance on the British during the Battle of Lexington. and Concord. When asked if he was scared, he allegedly replied: “No, I am not, and I haven’t a man that is!” A British musket ball hit him in the heart.
Of the 1,308,468 men and women who died in our wars, a majority of them didn’t die by bullet or blade. Most were killed by something they couldn’t see and did not yet well understand: disease.
Smallpox racked General George Washington’s Continental Army. Dysentery, diarrhea, malaria, and a host of other invisible enemies accounted for two-thirds of the Civil War dead. President Woodrow Wilson was warned that sending ships full of soldiers to fight in Europe — as the Spanish flu slaughtered millions — would result in catastrophe, which it did.
FACT-O-RAMA! WWII was the first American war to see more Americans killed in combat than by various diseases.
So, as the headline implies, let’s learn about some of the names that may not have made history, but were as American as you and I.
n 2019, construction workers digging a foundation in Lake George, N.Y., stumbled across the remains of 44 Continental soldiers and two children. Unfortunately, by the time the construction crew realized they had found human remains, 70 dump trucks’ worth of dirt had already been removed. They found only “bits and pieces.”
FACT-O-RAMA! During the Revolutionary War, soldiers were free to bring their families with them as they traveled to fight.
After years of studying the remains, researchers now believe they were members of Benedict Arnold’s army. They made an arduous trip to Quebec City, only to be defeated by the British. On the trek home, the weary troops broke out in smallpox. Too weak to travel, many soldiers were transported by boat to a hospital at the southern end of Lake George. Roughly 1,000 of them died. Their bodies were buried in mass graves around Lake George.
Long-lost remains of 44 Revolutionary War soldiers will finally get proper burial in NY town https://t.co/9wX8foiV3V pic.twitter.com/vTcuI5lfAC
— New York Post (@nypost) May 20, 2026
The Civil War took the greatest toll of all American wars, as nearly all those who were killed were Americans. For every three men killed in combat, five more died of disease. There were more casualties at the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1-3, 1863, than in both the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 combined.
FACT-O-RAMA! The youngest American to die in battle was Charles King, a 13-year-old boy drummer in the 9th Pennsylvania Volunteers. He died of wounds he sustained during the Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest day in American military history.
Wartime drummer boy, 13 years old, honored at SW FL Memorial Day event https://t.co/OGMVSao7Ba
— The News-Press (@TheNewsPress) May 23, 2026
One of those killed in Gettysburg wasn’t included in the battle statistics. Her name was Jenny Wade, 20, who is believed to have been killed by a stray Confederate bullet that hit her as she was kneading bread in her sister’s home. The bullet went through her back, pierced her heart, and was found lodged in her corset. Her sweetheart, Corporal Johnston “Jack” Hastings Skelly, had been wounded the previous month in the 2nd Battle of Winchester and died of his wounds on July 11, 1863. Neither ever knew that the other had been hit.
Today, the house where Wade was killed is a B&B.
We visited the Jenny Wade House and her nearby grave. pic.twitter.com/t6f9D5gziK
— Dave Taylor (@LinConspirators) November 19, 2017
There were civilians killed in WWII whom few people know about.
In a somewhat far-fetched terror plan, the Japanese sent over 9,000 “balloon bombs” into the jet stream to float to North America, intending to burn down the Northwest forests, but the region’s moisture made that impossible. One of the bombs landed near Bly, Ore.
Two adults and five children were picnicking when one of the children found and touched the bomb, which exploded, killing all of the children and a pregnant woman.
The Japanese Balloon Bomb That Killed an American Family on US Soil During WWII.
In May 1945, near the small town of Bly, Oregon, Reverend Archie Mitchell and his pregnant wife Elsie took five Sunday school children on a quiet picnic in the woods.
The kids ran ahead to explore… pic.twitter.com/TctRXbkUwf
— VisionaryVoid (@VisionaryVoid) March 28, 2026
On February 23, 1942, a Japanese submarine shelled an oil facility near Santa Barbara, Calif., causing little damage but terrifying everyone along the West Coast.
Late at night on the 24th, American radar detected something over Los Angeles. A blackout was declared as searchlights scanned the night skies and anti-aircraft guns opened fire. One of the shells fell to earth and hit a house before exploding. Panic set in as L.A. residents thought they were being bombed. The guns fired 1,400 rounds as the “Battle of Los Angeles” took place. Three civilians died in car crashes caused by panic and the lack of lights. Two more died of heart attacks. But here is the kicker: there were no Japanese planes over L.A. Twitchy nerves from the sub attack had people on edge, and officials took no chances.
FACT-O-RAMA! The greatest loss of life in American naval history took place on December 7, 1941, when Japanese high-altitude bombers hit the U.S.S. Arizona. The first bomb hit a gun turret and failed to explode. Another went into a forward magazine, blowing the ship’s bow 30 feet out of the water and killing 1,177 sailors and Marines, most of whom had no idea they were at war.
The last American to die in WWII was 21-year-old Sgt. Anthony Marchione.
Three days after the U.S. and Japan had agreed to a ceasefire, a flight of four B-32 Dominator heavy bombers was sent on a reconnaissance mission to photograph airfields in and around Tokyo to make sure Japanese planes were not in the air, as per the agreement. The war was effectively over, though a surrender treaty had not yet been signed.
As with every war, some refuse to stop fighting.
Marchione, a gunner and photographer’s assistant, was in one of the ill-fated Dominators. Two of the four bombers had to turn back due to technical problems. A flight of renegade Japanese pilots jumped the other two. The tail gunner was injured, and Marchione went to administer first aid and was himself hit with a 20 mm round. He bled out in the air.
FACT-O-RAMA! There is an old saloon in New York City called McSorley’s, with two dozen wishbones over the bar. Legend has it that a group of soldiers had dinner at the men-only bar the day before shipping out to Europe. They left the bones above the bar and vowed to retrieve them when they returned. Twenty-four never came home.
My plan for Memorial Day today is to drink beer, grill some hot dogs, drink more beer, listen to surf music, and celebrate commemorate those who made it possible for me to do these things. They will be on my mind all day.
Let’s kick off Memorial Day not with sadness but a little fun. Check out the latest video from our friends at “Jokes and a Point.” Liberals suck and can’t have fun, but we sure know how.
Our liberties are never guaranteed. Many have died to preserve them, not only for their generation but all that follows. You can do your part to keep the First Amendment intact by becoming a PJ Media VIP warrior today.
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We owe it to those who died for our country to keep our republic intact.
