IF THIS HOUSE COULD TALK - Blog Post #7

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Memorial Day is coming up. In Charles’ time it was called Decoration Day, and it was observed on May 30. True to its name, people would put flowers on graves. Charles and his gardeners had a floral business and so there was a lot of activity with townsfolk and soldiers stopping by to get their flowers. I remember one Decoration Day when Mr. Schmalzl, the gardener, got 200 cut roses packed in ice from Chicago. As for me and the other buildings in the Koester Block, Charles decorated us with flags and bunting. Large crowds gathered in front of us in anticipation of the parade. Businesses closed at 1 o’clock. At 1 ½ o’clock the uniformed veterans’ band from Lyon Post No. 9 would begin the procession. The band was followed by school children and as many as 600 or more citizens with garlands and bouquets in hand. They would walk to the old cemetery, decorate graves of soldiers, and then they marched to the new cemetery. Charles was proud of his park-like plot in the new cemetery (today’s city cemetery) where his late wife, Sylvia, and his parents were buried. I heard Charles say, “It is our garden upon the hill.” Charles and the children would put a wreath, basket, and bouquet on Mama’s (Sylvia’s) grave.