Veterans Day is an official United States public holiday, observed annually on November, that honors military veterans, that is, persons who served in the United States Armed Forces. Philadelphia hosted first ever Veteran’s Day Parade. Many people in the city have long awaited a parade to honor their veterans. The parade focused on veterans throughout history as well as commemorating the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, the 50th anniversary of Vietnam and the 25th anniversary of Desert Shield. The parade incorporated veterans groups and organizations from Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

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More than 12,000 Union soldiers are interred at the beautiful National Cemetery in Chattanooga, Tennessee, located near Orchard Knob. The park-like setting includes 121 acres of land, making it the largest cemetery in the state. With more than 37,000 interments presently, the cemetery is near capacity and will be closed to new interments in 2015. Only veterans, their wives and families may be buried here. Chattanooga is considered to be one of the few national cemeteries, if not the only one, where three civil war battle sites can be viewed.

credit: Robert Lz