Interesting facts about Father’s Day

The concept of Father’s Day is not very old. It came about a century ago by Sonora Dodd who lived in Spokane in Welsh. Dodd’s father, William Smart, was a widowed civil war veteran who raised six children on a farm. Dodd wanted to honor her father for all that he did for his children. The mayor of Spokane chose June 17 as the Father’s Day celebration. June also happens to be Smart’s birth month.

The first Father’s Day was celebrated on June 17, 1910. In 1966 President Lyndon Johnson designated the third Sunday of June as Father’s Day.

Since 1972, Father’s Day is celebrated annually in the USA as President Richard Nixon signed the public law that made this day as permanent for celebration of Father’s day. Father’s day is observed as a National holiday in the USA since then.

Whereas in the UK and the USA, the third Sunday of June is celebrated as the Father’s Day, in Australia they celebrate the Father’s day on the first Sunday in the month of September.

According to statistics, there were more than 70 million fathers in America in 2011 and 1.7 million were single fathers.

The Americans spend roughly $ 1 billion on buying father’s day gifts.

It is the fifth largest occasion for sending cards in America. Stats reveal that 100 million cards are sent annually on Father’s day in America alone. In the UK, 7 million Father’s day cards are sent annually.

While cards are the most popular Father’s day gifts, neck ties, electronic gadgets, sports equipment, books, clothes, and flowers are also popular gifts for Father’s day.

Rose is the official flowers for Father’s Day.