Father’s Day was founded in 1910 by Sonora Smart Dodd, daughter of a Civil War veteran and single father of six. Initially, the celebration of father’s day did not take off with much success until the 1930′s when Dodd rallied the support of trade groups that would benefit most from the holiday, manufacturers of ties, tobacco pipes and other gifts appealing to fathers.
For several decades, Father’s Day was perceived as just an attempt by merchants to replicate the commercial success of Mother’s Day even with attempts from President Woodrow Wilson and Calvin Coolidge to make the holiday official. In 1957, Margaret Chase Smith, a senator from Maine sparked controversy when she wrote a proposal accusing Congress of ignoring fathers for 40 years while honoring mothers, thus “[singling] out just one of our two parents”.
Nine years later, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued the first presidential proclamation honoring fathers, designating the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day. In 1972, the day was made a permanent national holiday when President Richard Nixon signed it into law.
We think dad should be celebrated all year long but it’s nice that he has one special day in his honor to be treated like a king.
Happy Father’s day to all the amazing men we call – DAD!