History of Father's Day



Mrs John B Dodd, a Washingtonian in the USA proposed the holiday to honor and celebrate her own father, Mr William Smart. Her father was a veteran of the Civil War, and he had been widowed when his wife, her mother, died whilst in childbirth for the sixth time. Mr Smart was left alone to raise his young family and the newborn child, on a deeply rural farm in agricultural Washington state. It wasn't until Mrs Dodd was grown up herself that she recognised the incredible difficulties and sacrifices that her father had made to raise his family, and the selflessness and strength he'd brought to his role of father - particularly as a single, widowed parent.

So it was thanks to Mr Smart and his daughter Mrs Dodd, that Father's Day as we know it was first celebrated in 1910. At about the same time, and shortly afterwards, other towns in America started to celebrate their own nominated 'Father's Day' and in 1924 the President - Calvin Coolidge, proposed a National Father's Day - an idea which was finally formally agreed and signed off by President Lyndon Johnson in 1966.

Father's Day is now recognised in many countries worldwide, who each have a date to celebrate Dads - as well as those other male role models who have such an influence in our lives when we grow up - uncles, grandfathers, stepfathers and mentors - all of them are honoured on this special day.

Greetings Cards For The Special Day

And of course, greetings cards are a very popular way of doing this! There are now so many fantastic styles and sentiments available in cards - whether touching, funny, sports related or inspiring - there's a card of all types and budgets to suit everyone. One new phenomenon that has particularly kicked off in recent years is that of the online personalised card - a greetings card made possible thanks to the technology of online shopping!

Online Innovations!

Rather than buy a card at your corner shop and fill it out with your dodgy handwriting - and then probably forget to post it on time (we've all done it!) - the beauty of online Fathers Day cards is that they are created by a seamless, simple process with beautiful results. Simply browse through the many beautiful and high quality art images in the stock catalogue - there are things including golf, football, garden and travel scenes, as well as Father's Day specific greetings and designs. You then type in your Dad's name, which is incorporated into the cover message for a truly personalised greeting and type in the message you'd like to appear inside. The card is then produced on a high quality card with stylised italic typefont inside for a classy and professional look (more legible than your usual scrawl too no doubt) and you can select other options such as an extra envelope if you'd like it to be sent to you to give personally to your Dad. Order the card before 1pm and it will be despatched on the same day for speedy first class delivery and even better you can preview the card as you're selecting the image and type options, to check that you're getting exactly what you want for your Dad!

Show You Care This Father's Day

Think carefully about your messages in Fathers Day cards - this is a good opportunity to tell your Dad how much you care, and he will really appreciate the sentiment. You might also want to accompany it with a thoughtful Father's Day gift - many of which are available online for ease of shopping and delivery. There's everything from experience days out - which you could enjoy together for a new memory - or quirky small gifts such as personalised wine bottles, funny books and calendars, engraved cufflinks and hobby related gifts. Otherwise you could even design a little handmade 'voucher' or token for a day out with you, or a trip to the nearest curry house! It doesn't need to be expensive to be appreciated, so if money is tight then think creatively - time spent with your Dad is the best gift of all and the one that he'll appreciate the most, so spend a little extra time and thought on Father's Day this year and show your Dad just how much he means to you.