Father’s Day began in 1908 with a church service in Fairmont, West Virginia, honoring men who died in a mining disaster the year before in nearby Monongah. In 1909, Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington, suggested creating a national day to celebrate fathers. Inspired by a sermon on Mother’s Day, she wanted to establish a day to recognize her own father, William Jackson Smart, a Civil War veteran who raised six children on his own. With support from local churches, community groups, and the YMCA, the third Sunday in June was chosen and the first official Father’s Day was celebrated on June 19, 1910.