Monday, November 11, is Veterans Day in the United States. It's a day for Americans to honor the men and women who answered the call to wear the uniform in the armed forces. Here's the history of the day.Ìý
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
The origins of Veterans Day start back in World War I. That's when an unknown American soldier was buried on a hillside in Arlington National Cemetery. The site overlooks the Potamic River and the nation's capital, Washington, D.C. That site is now the
The legislation that would lead to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was pitched in 1920 by New York Congressman Hamilton Fish Jr. Fish, a World War I veteran. Fish wanted to "bring home the body of an unknown American warrior who in himself represents no section, creed, or race in the late war and who typifies, moreover, the soul of America and the supreme sacrifice of her heroic dead."
Hamilton Fish Jr.
This site became a place for people to honor America's veterans.
Today, the Army's 3rd U.S. Infantry, known as "The Old Guard," stands watch over the site. The soldiers there stand watch 24 hours a day. That's regardless of weather conditions.
Armistice Day
Similar sites were set up in England at Westminster Abbey and in France at the Arc de Triomphe. Both nations were allied with the U.S. in World War I.
For all three nations, the memorial gestures happened on November 11, specifically on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. That day became known as Armistice Day.
A 1926 Congressional resolution made Armistice Day official in the United States. Twelve years later, it became a national holiday.
Veterans Day
November 11 was known as Armistice Day until 1954.
The first celebration to use the term Veterans Day happened in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1947. A World War II veteran named Raymond Weeks organized "National Veterans Day. The event included a parade and other ways to honor vets.
In 1954, U.S. Representative Edward Rees of Kansas pitched a bill to Congress to change Armistice Day to Veterans Day.
1968 Veterans Day was changed from November 11 to the fourth Monday in October. That lasted until 1978, when Congress recognized the significance of November 11 and changed the day back to its original date.
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