Polk County citizens will be given a chance to honor local veterans at a special ceremony that will be held on Veterans Day, Nov. 11.

Beginning at 11 a.m., veterans from different branches of military service will gather at the Polk County Courthouse No. 1.

The American Legion, who is sponsoring the event, will be on hand to conduct a special flag ceremony.

The event will feature two guest speakers, City Manager Barry Atkinson and Tallapoosa Judicial Court System District Attorney, Gerry Holmes.

Ceremony coordinator Richard Boss hopes to have children from local school also involved in the recognition service. Another Veterans Day service will be held at 11:45 a.m. at the Cedartown Wal-Mart.

Local veterans will be in attendance and a flag ceremony will be performed as well.

The public is invited to attend both events.

Additionally, several schools in the area will be honoring veterans with special school assemblies. Westside Elementary will be having a service at 11 a.m. Special speaker for Westside’s event will be Doug McCoy, a Cedartown native.

Cherokee Elementary will honor veterans with a parade, special music and special posters drawn by the students. Larry Odom, of Cedartown, will be the featured speaker.

Northside Elementary will host a Veterans Day ceremony, also at 11 a.m. All children will participate, but those having relatives that served in the military will be given special recognition. Larry Kuglar, of Cedartown, will be speaking to the children and veterans.

Veteran’s Day, a National holiday, was signed into effect in 1954 by President Eisenhower.

The special day of observance was brought about when, in 1921 an unknown World War I American soldier was buried in the Arlington National Cemetery. Similar burials occurred in England and France, where unknown soldiers were buried in each nation’s highest place of honor.

These special burials all took place on Nov. 11. This gave universal recognition to the celebrated ending of World War I which occurred in the eleventh month on the eleventh day at 11 a.m.

Originally labeled in 1926 as Armistice Day - armistice meaning treaty of peace, or ending of war – this title was changed after war broke out a few years later in Europe. The name was changed so that it could be used to honor all those who died in war, anticipating those who would die in the recently begun World War II.