by Zach Miller
Quick Summary
Minitex wishes a happy Father's Day to dads far and wide. We also wish we knew more about the origins of this national holiday. Fifteen minutes of research using Minitex's online library resources led us to the answer.
Father's Day didn't become a national holiday in the United States until 1972, when President Richard Nixon signed a bill into law making it so. By that time, Mother's Day had already been recognized for 60 years. A 2017 article from TIME Magazine suggests that the confluence of the Vietnam War and the movement for women's liberation led to a greater recognition of the "burdens and responsibilities placed upon" American men as well as the importance of their role as caregivers in the home. The full article is easily accessible by accessing Academic Search Premier through eLibrary Minnesota's Student Research page.
A different pond, by Bao Phi and Thi Bui is a wonderful illustrated book appropriate for fathers and sons of all ages. The ebook is available to Minnesota readers via Ebooks Minnesota. Many images of fathers and sons are available in the Minnesota Digital Library, including this image of Ortonville boat builder Joe Creese and his son Elmer. An inscription on the photograph reads, "In 1913, Dad was 45."
Works Cited
Waxman, Olivia B. “The Forgotten Origins of Father’s Day.” TIME Magazine, vol. 189, no. 24, June 2017, p. 19. EBSCOhost, https://search-ebscohost-com.content.elibrarymn.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=123611401&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Bui, Thi, and Bao Phi. Different Pond. Picture Window Books, 2017.
Boat builder Joe Creese and son Elmer, Ortonville, Minnesota. 1913. Big Stone County Historical Society, collection.mndigital.org/catalog/bsc:2325 Accessed 17 June 2022.
