Salem, Mass. - A celebration of the first formation of a military in what is now the United States was celebrated here April 4 by the Massachusetts National Guard along with several veteran organizations and living history groups.
The ancestors of the modern Massachusetts Army National Guard set a precedent in the New World by forming the first organized military regiment 372 years ago.
This event is celebrated annually on the Salem Common by the Massachusetts Army National Guard and the city of Salem. The common is the very spot where the regiment was formed in 1636.
The day of remembrance began with a wreath laying at St. Peter's Church in Salem, the gravesite of Capt. Stephen Abbott. In 1785, Abbott founded the 2nd Corps of Cadets and served as its first commander. This unit has become what is now the 101st Field Artillery Regiment (FAR).
The commemoration then moved to Armory Park on Essex Street to honor the sacrifices made by Soldiers during the American Revolution and in the ongoing Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom.
"This event allows us the opportunity to remember those Citizen-Soldiers, whose sacrifices enabled the creation of our nation," said Jay Finney of the Peabody Essex Museum.
Maj. James Hally, current commander of the 1st Battalion, 101st FAR, addressed his unit, military re-enactors from all periods of our nation's history, and a crowd of Salem residents on an overcast Saturday morning and then laid a wreath in remembrance of the Soldiers of the Essex Regiment, who died at the battle of Lexington and Concord during the Revolutionary War.
"I take great comfort in knowing that if I fall, or if one of my Soldiers falls during our tour of duty; our names will be remembered, our service will be honored and our sacrifice will never, ever be forgotten," he said.
The 101st FAR, the modern descendent of our nation's first regiment, will return to active duty in Afghanistan in early 2010.
Hally's address was followed by a 21-gun salute for those who gave the ultimate sacrifice in combat from generations both past and present.
The ceremony continued on the Salem Common, where members of the 101st FAR, the 101st Engineers Battalion, the 181st Infantry Regiment, and the 182nd Cavalry Regiment of the Massachusetts Army National Guard formed up along with the military re-enactors from several periods in history, from the first regiment in 1636 to World War II.
The 101st Field Artillery also provided a 13-howitzer salute in honor of the troops past and present.
Maj. Gen. Joseph C. Carter, adjutant general of the Massachusetts National Guard, performed the ceremonial inspection of the troops, circling the entire formation on the field before returning to the podium.
"When you enter the theatre in either Iraq or Afghanistan, you take with you nearly 400 years of honor, courage, and sacrifice," he said.