Father's Day

In 1909 a woman named Sonora Smart Dodd in Spokane, Washington was listening to a sermon for Mother's Day.  It was then that she had the idea to create a special days to honor fathers.  Ms. Dodd was raised by her father, William Jackson Smart, after her mother died giving birth to her sixth child, and Sonora wanted her father to know how special he was to her. 

Since her father was born in June she chose to hold the first Father's Day celebration in Spokane, Washington on the 19th of June, 1910.

In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson approved of this idea, but it was not until 1924 when President Calvin Coolidge made it a national event.   In 1926, a National Father's Day Committee was formed in New York City, however it wasn't until 1956 that Father's Day was recognized by a Joint Resolution of Congress.   In 1966 President Lyndon Johnson signed a presidential proclamation declaring the 3rd Sunday of June as Father's Day and put the official stamp on a celebration that was going on for almost half a century.

In 1972, President Richard Nixon established a permanent national observance of Father's Day to be held on the third Sunday of June.

Father's Day is celebrated in the US, United Kingdom, Canada it's celebrated on the third Sunday in June.  However if you are from Australia Father's Day is celebrated on the First Sunday in September.  There are some alternate days of celebration, for instance, many Catholics call St. Joseph's Day, on March 19th, Father's Day because Joseph was the father of Jesus.

Traditions:  One tradition for Father's Day is to wear a flower.  Red roses are worn on Father's Day to signify that one's father is living. White roses mean one's father has died. 

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