#34: Because Fathers Deserve a Place in the Sun, Too
On the Origins of Father's Day
Celebrating Fatherhood
In the United States, Father’s Day is celebrated on the third Sunday in June every year. The now annual holiday was founded by Sonora Smart Dodd (pictured below), the daughter of a Civil War veteran, William Jackson Smart.
After hearing a Mother’s Day sermon in May 1909 (Mother’s Day was established the previous May), Sonora, whose twice-widowed father raised her and her five younger brothers alone, was inspired to establish a similar day of devotion to dads. The first Father’s Day was celebrated on June 19, 1910.
In a 1964 interview, Sonora, then 82 years old, explained her motivation for working indefatigably to honor fathers in addition to mothers (Mother’s Day was founded two years earlier in 1908).
“It is not difficult to recall the twilight of an early March day [in 1898] at the turn of the century when bereavement came to us at the loss of our mother. Father assumed the role of father-mother in the rearing of his six children. This role he performed with courage and selflessness until we were all in homes of our own. ” She furthered, “Fathers deserve a place in the sun, too.”
Sonora was just 16 when her mom passed away.
Father’s Day Becomes a National Holiday
While Mother’s Day became a U.S. national holiday in 1917, it would take another 61 years for Father’s Day to achieve the same status. There was significant resistance from both Congress and the public fearing it wasn’t really necessary and could potentially overshadow Mother’s Day, that it was a bit emasculating (giving gifts to dads?), and/or that it was just a commercial marketing ploy to sell more tchotchkes. In the end, the resistance waned and in 1972 Father’s Day became an official holiday.
The first Congressional effort to make Father’s Day a national holiday took place in 1913, but it didn’t really pick up steam until the middle of the 20th century. Beginning with the 89th Congress in 1966, there were four key activities, or steps, that put Father’s Day on the official books.
» Step 1: U.S. Senate Joint Resolution 161 (Public Law 89-450)
On June 15, 1966, the 89th Congress issued a joint resolution (S.J. Res 161) establishing June 15, 1966, the third Sunday in June that year, as Father’s Day. The resolution authorized and requested the President to proclaim Father’s Day the same year.
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
That the third Sunday in June of 1966 is hereby designated as "Father's Day". The President is authorized and requested to issue a proclamation calling on the appropriate Government officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on such day, inviting the governments of the States and communities and the people of the United States to observe such day with appropriate ceremonies, and urging our people to offer public and private expressions on such day to the abiding love and gratitude which they bear for their fathers.
Approved June 15, 1966.
» Step 2: Presidential Proclamation 3730-Father’s Day, June 15, 1966
Given Congress’ authorization and request, then President Lyndon B. Johnson issued a presidental proclamation, Proclamation 3730-Father’s Day, 1966, recognizing Father’s Day as a national observance.
A Proclamation
The third Sunday in June has for many years been observed as Father's Day. It is most appropriate that the Congress, by enactment of Senate Joint Resolution 161, has now given official recognition to this well-established tradition.
In the homes of our Nation, we look to the fathers to provide the strength and stability which characterize the successful family.
If the father's responsibilities are many, his rewards are also great— the love, appreciation, and respect of children and spouse. It is the desire to acknowledge publicly these feelings we have for the fathers of our Nation that has inspired the Congress to call for the formal observance of Father's Day.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, LYNDON B. JOHNSON, President of the United States of America, in consonance with Senate Joint Resolution 161 of the Eighty-ninth Congress, request the appropriate Government officials to arrange for the display of the flag on all Government buildings on Father's Day, Sunday, June 19, 1966. I invite State and local governments to cooperate in the observance of that day; and I urge all our people to give public and private expression to the love and gratitude which they bear for their fathers.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States of America to be affixed.
DONE at the City of Washington this fifteenth day of June in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and sixty-six, and of the Independence of the United States of America the one hundred and ninetieth.
LYNDON JOHNSON
» Step 3: U.S. House Joint Resolution 687 (Public Law 92-278)
On April 24, 1972, the 92nd Congress issued a joint resolution (H.J. Res. 687) officially establishing the third Sunday in June every year as Father’s Day. While the 1966 proclamation established national observance of Father’s Day, this new resolution established Father’s Day as a national holiday.
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America In Congress assembled.
That the third Sunday in June of each year is hereby designated as ""Father's Day". The President is authorized and requested to issue a proclamation calling on the appropriate Government officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on such day, inviting the governments of the States and communities and the people of the United States to observe such day with appropriate ceremonies, and urging our people to offer public and private expressions of such day to the abiding love and gratitude which they bear for their fathers.
Approved April 24, 1972.
» Step 4: Presidential Proclamation 4224-Father’s Day, June 17, 1973
Per the Congressional resolution, which became law on the same day it was issued, President Nixon issued the first presidential proclamation formally recognizing a long-standing tradition in the United States, Proclamation 4224-Father’s Day, 1973.
A Proclamation
Each year, the third Sunday in June is set aside to honor the American father. In a complex and sometimes coldly impersonal age, Father's Day brings us back to basics.
A basic unit of our society is the family which a father helps to form and hold together. A basic force in our economic life is the work a father does to provide for his wife and children. One of the strongest leadership influences forming the character of our young people is the example a father sets for his sons and daughters. The very identity through which we know ourselves is rooted in surnames proudly inherited from our fathers and their fathers before them.
All of these things are part of what fatherhood means, yet the whole is also more than the sum of its parts. At its heart is the timeless impulse, commonplace yet wonderfully noble, that moves man to partnership with woman and both to the raising of children, children for whom they strive to build a home and a world a little better than what they themselves have known before.
It is the American father's glory that he works to make each day of the year his family's; it is our proper tribute to him, that we should join to make this one day his.
On this Father's Day we again have the opportunity to pay a justly deserved tribute to the counselors, providers, arbiters, and leaders who are our fathers.
Now, Therefore, I, Richard Nixon, President of the United States of America, in accordance with a joint resolution of the Congress approved April 24, 1972, do hereby request that June 17, 1973, be observed as Father's Day.
I invite the governments of the States and communities to observe Father's Day with appropriate ceremonies, and I urge all our people to offer public and private expressions on that day of the abiding love and gratitude which they bear for the fathers of America.
In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this fifteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred seventy-three, and of the Independence of the United States of America, the one hundred ninety-seventh.
RICHARD NIXON
Every President has issued an annual Father’s Day proclamation since.
Did Sonora Smart Dodd Live to See Father’s Day Become a Holiday?
Yes, she did!
Fortunately, Sonora, who was born on February 18, 1882, lived to see the ultimate payoff of her life’s work at age 90 when Father’s Day became a national holiday in 1972. She would live another six years, dying on March 22, 1978 at age 96.
Happy Father’s Day, Dad!
If you’re like my husband, Chris, and me and no longer have an earthly father, today can be a tough one, especially if your loss is recent. While neither of us pursued their honor like Sonora, we still loved them as much.
Given the passage of time, the acute pain of paternal loss has subsided and mostly given way to great memories. Our thoughts now bring more smiles than tears, but the loss is and will always be permanent. Nothing can perfectly fill the hole left by a father, but we learn to compensate for what feels like a missing part of our body by remembering them well.
Chris and I often talk about how much our dads would have enjoyed each other’s company as they shared very similar (too similar!) senses of humor, several years of military service, and an obnoxious amount of pride in their kids who happened to marry each other.
Today, instead of focusing on our loss, we’ve resolved to focus on our gain, our gain for simply being their kids. Like every family, there were great times, terrible times, and big and small lessons learned, but Chris and I are extra fortunate because both of our dads were there. They were present in our lives, always stepping-up-to-the-plate, regardless of the cost.
So, here’s to you dads, pops and pa, for always being in the batter’s box, and for teaching us how to do the same!
You, just like Sonora’s dad, will always have your place in the sun …
Happy Father’s Day to all the dads (around the world) … you’re the backbone of civilization and we appreciate you more than we will probably ever tell you!
xo,
Kelley
June 15, 2025, Father’s Day
Wonderful article, Kelley! Thank you for sharing it with us.
Thank you for this article, Kelley!!