A young girl places a flag on gravestones at Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Boulder City on Wednesday Nov. 10, 2021. Dozens of volunteers, including veterans, first responders, and military service members, arrived to place flags on the gravestones ahead of Veteran’s Day.
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Originally called Decoration Day, Memorial Day has its roots in the Civil War. Union General John L. Logan issued an order May 30, 1868, calling on the soldiers in his command to gather at the burial sites of fallen soldiers and “garland the passionless mounds above them with choicest flowers of springtime,” “raise above them the dear old flag they saved from dishonor,” “arrange such fitting services and testimonials of respect as circumstances may permit,” and “guard their graves with sacred vigilance.”
These are all worthy activities that we encourage Nevadans to participate in. But this year, we’re also asking Nevadans to take some time between now and Veterans Day to visit and reflect upon Nevada’s Book of Fallen Heroes, which turns 10 years old this year.
Housed within a wood and glass case at the state Capitol in Carson City, the handbound book chronicles the names of every one of the soldiers from the Silver State who has given their life in defense of the country.
Covering all 160 years of Nevada’s storied history, the book is a testament to Nevada’s unique role in forming the union of vastly different yet nonetheless united states that form our great nation. After all, Nevada is a state born of the Civil War in which neighbors took up arms against each other in a fight over whether our laws and government would recognize the rights and humanity of every American, no matter the color of their skin.
Since then, Nevadans have continued to respond to the call to defend American freedoms and liberties, sometimes giving their life in the process. Nevada’s Book of Fallen Heroes chronicles every one of them that the state is aware of.
The book was the brainchild of former Gov. Brian Sandoval, who was inspired by a collection of books that chronicle similar information in Canada. Sandoval tasked Caleb Cage, an Iraq War veteran and former director of the Nevada Department of Veteran Services, with compiling the list of names and information of the state’s fallen soldiers.
With help from the Nevada Military Support Alliance, Cage spent months reviewing government service records, historical documents, monuments and even letters and other personal effects in order to complete the original chronicle, which was revealed on the eve of Veterans Day in November 2014. Since then, more names have been added as Nevadans have come forward with additional information. We all owe Cage a debt of gratitude.
The official book, which was handmade by Clyde Jurey, a custom book binder and restorer in Wellington, is housed within the glass case for protection, but a copy sits nearby for the public to peruse. The case is also opened each week and one page is turned, revealing another 20 heroes from Nevada’s history.
Guarding the book are three flags, unyielding sentinels defending the solemn pages and the memories contained within them.
One is a U.S. flag that flew in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sept. 11, 2014 – the year the Book of Fallen Heroes was unveiled and Nevada’s sesquicentennial. There is also a Nevada flag that was taken from Kandahar Airfield, where the 422nd Expeditionary Signal Battalion of the Nevada Army National Guard was deployed.
The third flag was donated by Sandoval personally. It’s a very large hand-sewn Nevada flag that is believed to have flown at Nevada military installations during the early years of statehood. Together, the flags and book serve as a permanent reminder of the cost of freedom and the responsibility shared by every American to ensure the names and stories contained within the book are not forgotten.
In a speech at Amherst College, President John F. Kennedy remarked that, “A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces but also by the men it honors, the men it remembers.”
This Memorial Day, we encourage all Nevadans to take a moment and reflect upon the people whose names are memorialized in the Book of Fallen Heroes. Each name represents a story of sacrifice, a family forever changed and a future never realized. It’s up to us to remember those stories, to share them with our children and grandchildren so that they can share them with future generations.
Moreover, we also call on Nevadans to fulfill the promise of Gen. Logan to “renew our pledge to aid and assist those whom they have left among us as sacred charges upon the nation’s gratitude — the soldier’s and sailor’s widow and orphan.”
Gold Star families bear the burden of loss every day, and our community’s recognition and support can provide them with much-needed solace and strength. Volunteering with veteran support organizations, lending a supportive ear or simply inviting them to join your family’s Memorial Day barbecue can make a significant difference in their lives.
