Father's Day: A Brief History Lesson - Rock Lobster Jewellery

Father's Day: A Brief History Lesson

While it seems that we've been putting extra thought into Dad's special gifts and heartfelt cards since the beginning of time, you may be surprised to find out this now internationally recognised holiday has only been around for the last 52 years. But we still ask ourselves, where did it all begin? Who thought of it first? And why does the whole world celebrate it? 

Well stick around and let us share the knowledge.

Why do we celebrate Father's Day? 

On the one hand, this can be answered simply. Mother's Day is a national holiday celebrated across the globe, so why neglect Fathers? They too deserve to bask in the glory of parental recognition. This was the thought that ignited the motion to create a day dedicated to hard-working fathers by Sonora Smart Dodd in the US. 

Who is Sonora Smart Dodd? 

Father's Day was a concept pushed by one American woman, Dodd. Raised by her father in Spokane, Washington following the life-changing death of her mother at childbirth, he also successfully managed to raise six children by himself. She was inspired to honour her father, a civil war veteran born in June, after his passing when she was aged just 16. 

Following a Mother's Day sermon in 1906, she realised the lack of recognition for father figures and decided to campaign to her religious leaders - Methodists at the time - for a special service that we now call Father's Day. 

In today's terms, one could say the event went "viral" as it was soon widely accepted.

So when is Father's Day celebrated and why? What happened after? 

Despite the fact Father's Day was first celebrated in 1910 and was subsequently celebrated year after year by Americans, it took another 56 years for President Lyndon Johnson to sign an executive order in 1966 indicating the national holiday was to be celebrated on the third Sunday every June. 

By the mid-twentieth century, Father's Day was well-established. It became particularly important during World War II as a way to support the troops, many of whom were fathers. This resulted in the US Congress to pass an act under President Richard Nixon to eternalise Father's Day. 

Fortunately, Sonora Dodd lived long enough to see this take place. 

Modern-day Father's Day traditions

Now, Father's Day is considered the fourth-largest card-sending holiday in the United States with over 72 million cards exchanged for this Holiday. 

Here in the UK thousands of Britons collectively celebrate the holiday with their fathers, husbands and even grandfathers at times, purchasing a card and a gift ranging anything from £10 to £100 on average. Some have grown accustomed to treating Fathers to restaurants for a nice meal. 

And yet some of us are still trying to find that perfect gift! So to make it easier for you, we've created a collection based on our favourite fool-proof gifts to make him say Wow this Father's day.

To view the collection, click here.
 
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