The
History of Veterans Day
By Steve Paul Johnson, November 9, 2000
It was known as "the War to end all Wars". The first world
war is considered today as the event which has had the greatest social
and political impact in the annals of human history. It has been estimated
that more than 61.5 million soldiers from all nations took part in the
war, of which 8.5 million were killed, 12.5 million received recoverable
injuries, and 7 million were permanently injured.
The United States, which entered the war late, suffered among the fewest
losses, at approximately 116,000. Nevertheless, the impact the war had
upon Americans was great. President Wilson, who boasted that he would
keep the United States out of the war, shocked the country with his
request for war.
November 11, 1918 marked the official end of the war. One year later,
President Wilson proclaimed November 11, 1919, as "Armistice Day".
It was the first nationwide commemoration of the war.
On November 11, 1920, England laid to rest an unknown soldier in Westminster
Abbey, a way to commemorate their losses in the war. France had carried
a similar act the same year at the Arc de Triomphe.
On November 11, 1921, the United States followed-up with their own
version. An unknown soldier, who had already been laid to rest at a
cemetery in Europe, was selected and placed aboard a ship to Washington
D.C. It was to fill the new "Tomb of the Unknown Soldier".
It was a much hyped and heralded event that received press coverage
from coast-to-coast. Thousands of people flocked to see the body laying
in state in the Capitol rotunda. There was a funeral procession down
Pennsylvania Avenue. Each state sent in floral arrangements to adorn
the tomb. President Harding laid a wreath of flowers on the casket.
Taps was played. The casket was placed into the tomb at 11:00am. The
President requested that all flags be flown at half-mast.
Though this event had been performed a year earlier in England and
France, it had a more powerful effect among Americans. That single unknown
soldier not only symbolized America's losses, but each American's
losses and sacrifices in the war.
In the years following, 27 states had responded to that emotional event
by adopting laws declaring November 11 as a legal holiday. The United
States Congress reacted by enacting a resolution on June 4, 1926, asking
the President to issue a proclaimation to display the nation's colors
on all buildings on November 11. The resolution officially named the
day, "Armistice Day".
On May 13, 1938, Congress enacted a new law that made Armistice Day
a national holiday.
In 1947, just 2 years after the end of World War II, Raymond Weeks,
organized a "Veterans Day" parade in Birmingham, AL, to celebrate
all of America's veterans. In 1954, Kansas Representative Edwin K. Rees
introduced a bill that would change the purpose of Armistice Day to
honor veterans of all wars. On June 1, 1954, President Eisenhower signed
the bill into law, officially renaming Armistice Day to Veterans Day.
Later that same year, on October 8, Eisenhower issued a proclaimation
creating a new "Veterans Day National Committee" and naming
the Administrator of the Department of Veterans Affairs as its coordinator.
The Committee would be responsible for planning all national ceremonies
and to set an example for state and local governments, as well as providing
suggestions for Americans on how to celebrate Veterans Day.
On Memorial Day of 1958, two more unknown soldiers were reinterred
along side the unknown soldier of World War I. One was a casualty of
World War II and the other one of the Korean War. In 1973, a law was
passed to add another unknown soldier from the Vietnam war, but none
could be found until 1984.
In 1968, a law was passed to change the date of Veterans Day to the
fourth Monday in October. This was done to give Americans a three-day
weekend, thus affording them time to visit cemeteries, engage in ceremonies,
and visit veterans memorials. But other Americans felt that November
11 was too much of an important day to forget. Many states continued
to observe November 11. In 1978, President Ford signed into law a bill
that would restore November 11 as Veterans Day.
Today, the Veterans Day National Committee coordinates all federal
ceremonies relating to Veterans Day. Every November 11, a ceremony is
held in Arlington National Cemetery, at the "Tomb of the Unknown
Soldier". The President recreates the original event by placing
a wreath at the tomb, and Taps is played. The Committee coordinates
similar ceremonies at "regional sites" across the country.
The Committee also prepares a school kit describing how schools should
celebrate Veterans Day. Since 1978, the Committee has been hosting a
poster contest, whereby highschool students are encouraged to create
a poster commemorating Veterans Day. One winning poster from each state
is selected, and from that group, one is selected as the national winner.
The graphic at the top of this page is the 2000 national winner.
- Steve Paul Johnson
Sources for this article came from various documents published
by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and from texts of actual
laws and resolutions.
For Further Reading
