HISTORY OF FATHER'S DAY


          On December 6, 1907, a terrible mine explosion at Monongah killed more than 360 men, 210 of whom were fathers. Mrs. Charles (Grace) Clayton who still felt the deep loss of her father, Rev. Fletcher Golden, a Methodist minister, who died in 1896, sympathized with the grieving wives and children of these men. Mrs. Clayton thought it would be wonderful if fathers were given a special day to be honored and remembered and would also be of aid to the grieving families.

          With this in mind, Mrs. Charles (Grace) Clayton, approached her paster, the Rev. Webb, about a special day to honor fathers. Rev. Webb in total agreement began preparations for a special mass to honor all fathers. Although not acknowledged as the first Father's Day observation, a special mass was held in honor and rememberance of fathers' on July 5, 1908, at Fairmont, West Virginia. This first service was presided over by, the Rev. Robert Thomas Webb at Williams Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church, South.

          Unfortunately, due to an oversight on the part of Mrs. Clayton, she is not credited with the establishment of Father's Day. She did not follow though to convince the City of Fairmont or the State of West Virginia to issue a proclamation establishing an annual Father's Day.

          Mrs. John Bruce Dodd (Sonora Smart), of Spokane Washington, spoke with her minister, Dr. Rasmus about founding a Father's Day in 1909, to honor her father, Henry Jackson Smart. Henry Smart was widowed when his wife died in childbirth with their sixth child. At the time of his wife's death the Smart family lived on a rural farm in eastern Washington state. He was left to raise the newborn along with their five other children by himself. It was only once she herself became an adult that she realised the sacrifices her father had made as a single parent. It was at that time she reflected and understood the values her father had set over the past 21 years being both father and mother to his children. When Mrs. Dodd first presented her idea to her minister, Dr. Rasmus, she saw this holiday for fathers centered around special church services. It was to be a day fathers would be honored by their children with words of affection and small gifts to show their love.

          The following year, in the spring of 1910, Mrs. Dodd presented a petition to Rev. Conrad Bluhm, president of the Spokane Ministerial Association, asking that he and the Association consider June 19th, (her father's date of birth) as a day for the honoring of fathers. Once a date was established, the Association approached the mayor of Spokane who issued a proclamation on this. A request was sent to the state capitol and Govorner Hay of Washington set the third Sunday in June for a state-wide observance of Father's Day. The first celebration of Father's Day was held on June 19, 1910 in Spokane Washington, two years after the initial service in Fairmont, WV. It was also around this time that people from various town and cities across America were beginning to celebrate Father's Day.

          IMPORTANT DATES FOR FATHER'S DAY

          • 1908, July 5 - A special mass was held in honor and rememberance of fathers', at Fairmont, West Virginia

          • 1910 June 19 - The first celebration of Father's Day was held in Spokane Washington, two years after the initial service in Fairmont, WV.

          • 1924 - President Calvin Coolidge supported the idea of a national Father's Day.

          • 1926 - a National Father's Day Committee was formed in New York City.

          • 1956 - Father's Day was recognized by a Joint Resolution of Congress.

          • 1966 - President Lyndon Johnson signed a presidential proclamation declaring the 3rd Sunday of June as Father's Day.

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


          FINAL WORDS

          As we can see, although not given credit, the fact remains that the first Father's Day service held on July 5, 1908 was founded by Mrs. Grace Clayton and presided over by Rev. Robert T. Webb in the Williams Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church, South, at the northwest corner of Second Street and Fairmont Avenue, Fairmont, West Virginia.

          The original church was torn down when members erected a new church in 1922. This church was located at the southwest corner of Third Street and Fairmont Avenue and named Billingslea Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church, South. The church has since been named Central United Methodist Church, and still celebrates Father's Day with special services every year. In 1984, a plaque was placed on an outside church wall and in 1958 a historical marker was erected in front of the church by the West Va. Department of Archives and History.

          If you happen to be out driving near Fairmont, you can see the highway signs erected at city entrances proclaiming "Welcome to Fairmont--the Friendly City--Home of the First Father's Day Service, July 5, 1908".



          Next

          Index

          Home Page





          This page hosted by GeoCities Get your own Free Home Page


          Hosted by www.Geocities.ws

          1