Compiled by Susan Larson
Fredericksburg is a city filled with Memorial Day events. Here’s a list for 2015. Click the hyperlinks for additional details.
Thunder for the Cause
Friday, May 22, 6 – 11 p.m.
Saturday, May 23, 10 a.m – 11 p.m.
Sunday, May 24, 12 – 7 p.m. (Gates open 5:30 – 7:15 a.m. for participants in the Rolling Thunder Motorcade.)
Overnight campers and vendors have until 12 noon on Monday, May 25, to check-out.
One Life Cycles, 5700 Fenton Rd., Spotsylvania
Food, fun and live entertainment. Motorcade to D.C. on Sunday. Complete schedule online.
A camping pass is $115. See the camping webpage for complete details and to register.
Tickets are $10 a day or $20 for a three-day pass. Tickets and passes may be purchased online at Eventbrite.
SATURDAY, May 23, 2015
The Last Days of Stonewall Jackson
3:30 p.m. at Ellwood Manor at Wilderness Battlefield, 36380 Constitution Hwy. (Route 20), Locust Grove, Va.
Presented by author Chris Mackowski, the talk will last approximately 45 minutes. Mr. Mackowski is the author of several books, including “The Close Dark Woods” and “The Last Days of Stonewall Jackson.”
Free.
Fredericksburg City and Confederate Cemetery Memorial Luminaria and Walking Tour
6 – 10 p.m. at the Fredericksburg City and Confederate Cemetery at the corner of William Street and Washington Avenue.
Period music, color and rifle guards, taps and luminarias. Walking tour 6:30 – 8 p.m.
Sponsored by the Fredericksburg Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy.
Free; donations welcomed. Rain date is Sunday, May 25.
Fredericksburg National Cemetery Luminary
8 – 11 p.m. at the Fredericksburg National Cemetery, located at the junction of Sunken Road and Lafayette Boulevard.
A luminaria will be lit for each of the 15,300 soldiers buried here. Taps will be played throughout the evening. National Park staff and volunteers will present interpretative talks throughout the cemetery.
Due to limited parking, a free shuttle service will operate from the University of Mary Washington parking lot on the corner of William St. and Sunken Rd. Handicapped parking will be available in the parking lot behind the Fredericksburg Battlefield Visitor Center, with another shuttle operating between that point and the cemetery.
Free. Rain date is Sunday, May 24. No pets, please.
Read more at Fredericksburg National Cemetery Luminaria
SUNDAY, May 24, 2015
Thunder for the Cause Joins the Rolling Thunder Motorcade
One Life Cycles, 5700 Fenton Rd., Spotsylvania
Blessing of the bikes at 6:45 a.m.
Police escorted motorcade leaves at 7 a.m. for the Penatgon.
Band of America’s Few Concert
10:30 a.m. – 12 noon at the National Museum of the Marine Corps, 18900 Jefferson Davis Hwy., Triangle, Va.
Made up entirely of honorably discharged former U.S. Marine Corps band members, the Band of America’s Few will perform patriotic and American folk music on the Museum’s Parade Deck.
Free admission, free parking.
MONDAY, May 25, 2015
Fredericksburg Masonic Lodge Memorial Day Event
9 a.m., beginning at the Masonic Cemetery, George and Charles Streets in downtown Fredericksburg.
Free.
American Legion Post 290 Wreath Laying
9 a.m. at the War Memorial in the Stafford Courthouse Plaza, 1300 Courthouse Rd., Stafford,
Free.
Fredericksburg Confederate Cemetery Memorial Day Ceremony
10 a.m. at the Fredericksburg Confederate Cemetery at the corner of William Street and Washington Avenue. Sponsored by the Ladies’ Memorial Association of Fredericksburg.
Free. In case of rain the event will be held at Historic Kenmore, 1201 Washington Ave.
Fredericksburg National Cemetery Memorial Day March
Shiloh Baptist Church (Old Site), 801 Sophia St., Fredericksburg. Gather at the church at 11 a.m. for the procession to the Fredericksburg National Cemetery. The procession begins at 11:15 a.m., and will be led by the re-created 23rd Regiment United States Colored Troops, recreating the historic trek to the National Cemetery in the years immediately following the Civil War.
Free.
Fredericksburg National Cemetery Memorial Day Ceremony
Noon, Fredericksburg National Cemetery, Sunken Road and Lafayette Boulevard.
The National Park Service hosts this annual ceremony honoring the our nation’s fallen soldiers. Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park Chief Historian John Hennessy will deliver the keynote address. The ceremony will last approximately 30 minutes.
Free.
Stafford County Cemetery Committee Memorial Day Ceremony
2 p.m. Stafford Courthouse Plaza, 1300 Courthouse Rd., Stafford
The Colonial Forge High School ROTC Color Guard will present the colors, and Cemetery Committee member Anita Dodd will speak about Master Sergeant David Grey, an Army and Marine Corps veteran who participated in the Battle of Heartbreak Ridge in Korea..
Free.
Fredericksburg Area Veterans Council Memorial Day Ceremony
2:45 p.m. at the Fredericksburg Area War Memorial Park, George, Barton and Liberty Streets.
Free.
Rappahannock Pops Annual Memorial Day Concert
6 p.m. at the entrance to the Mary Washington Hospital Ambulatory Care Entrance, 1001 Sam Perry Blvd., Fredericksburg.
Free. In case of rain, the concert will be held at Grace Church of Fredericksburg, 1141 Heatherstone Dr.
More
5 Memorial Day Events Beyond the Burg
95 Express Lanes Schedule for Memorial Day Weekend
Memorial Day Events in the Fredericksburg Area
Photos: Fredericksburg National Cemetery Luminaria
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