Father’s Day is coming up on the third Sunday in June. Do you know its history? Believe it or not, a tragedy in West Virginia is at the heart of its celebration in America.
Father’s Day has been celebrated since the 1500s in Europe, but it wasn’t until the early 20th century that America began to follow suit.
Larry McGill/Google Maps And the first Father’s Day celebration in this country occurred right here in West Virginia at what is today named Central United Methodist Church in Fairmont, in honor of the fathers who died in the Monongah Mining Disaster.
On the morning of December 6, 1907, tragedy struck the mining town of Monongah.
The Spokane Press/Wikipedia An explosion occurred deep inside Fairmont Coal Company’s Number 6 and Number 8 mines. It killed almost everyone inside at the time, and the small handful who were rescued all later died of their injuries. Over 360 people perished; 250 of them were fathers. It’s considered one of the worst mining disasters in American history.
One thousand children lost their dads that day. Grace Golden Clayton, who was mourning the recent loss of her own father, sympathized with the weight of their sorrow. The following summer, she convinced her pastor to honor fathers in a special service on July 5, 1908.
Jon Dawson/Flickr Williams Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church South in Fairmont, West Virginia hosted the event.
For a variety of reasons, the service did not grow beyond the local Fairmont community.
Tom Brandt/Flickr It wasn’t until Sonora Smart Dodd of Washington state, inspired by Mother’s Day founder and West Virginian Anna Jarvis, threw herself behind the idea of Father’s Day that the holiday really began gaining traction in America.
In 1966, President Lyndon Johnson finally issued the official proclamation that designated the third Sunday in June as a nationally recognized holiday honoring fathers. The holiday was made permanent in 1972 by President Richard Nixon.
Jon Dawson/Flickr But it all started in rural West Virginia, as a way for grieving children to remember and honor the dads they lost in the Monongah Mine Disaster.
We don’t usually think of Father’s Day as being especially for the fatherless, but that was a major part of its original intent. So whether you will be celebrating the day with your father or without him this year, this day is for you.
Larry McGill/Google Maps
And the first Father’s Day celebration in this country occurred right here in West Virginia at what is today named Central United Methodist Church in Fairmont, in honor of the fathers who died in the Monongah Mining Disaster.
The Spokane Press/Wikipedia
An explosion occurred deep inside Fairmont Coal Company’s Number 6 and Number 8 mines. It killed almost everyone inside at the time, and the small handful who were rescued all later died of their injuries. Over 360 people perished; 250 of them were fathers. It’s considered one of the worst mining disasters in American history.
Jon Dawson/Flickr
Williams Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church South in Fairmont, West Virginia hosted the event.
Tom Brandt/Flickr
It wasn’t until Sonora Smart Dodd of Washington state, inspired by Mother’s Day founder and West Virginian Anna Jarvis, threw herself behind the idea of Father’s Day that the holiday really began gaining traction in America.
But it all started in rural West Virginia, as a way for grieving children to remember and honor the dads they lost in the Monongah Mine Disaster.
As we mentioned earlier in the article, Mother’s Day also originated in West Virginia, and you can read its story here.
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Address: Monongah, WV 26554, USA
