Mother’s Day is May 10, but it’s never too early to start thinking of ways to honor dear ole dad.
Father’s Day – the annual holiday celebrating dads, father figures and other paternal bonds – is in June. The idea for Father’s Day emerged decades after Mother’s Day, and the observance became a nationally celebrated holiday in 1972.
But when is Father’s Day this year? How did the holiday begin? Here’s what to know.
When is Father’s Day 2026?
Father’s Day is celebrated each year on the third Sunday in June. This year, it lands on June 21.
When was the first Father’s Day?
According to USA TODAY, the first Father’s Day was celebrated in 1910, but it took more than six decades for it to become an official holiday.
Father’s Day was first recognized in 1916 by President Woodrow Wilson, who made Mother’s Day an official holiday in 1914. Then, in 1924, President Calvin Coolidge urged states to observe the holiday.
Finally, in 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson made the first presidential proclamation that honored fathers, designating the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day.
Who started Father’s Day? Why do we celebrate it?
Sonora Smart Dodd, a woman in Spokane, Washington, who was raised by her widower father, is recognized as the founder of Father’s Day. Dodd petitioned local churches, the YMCA and shopkeepers to observe Father’s Day – a Mother’s Day counterpart that would celebrate dads.
Thanks to her efforts, Washington became the first state to celebrate Father’s Day on June 19, 1910, according to History.com.
Does Father’s Day change every year?
Yes, because Father’s Day is designated to a particular day of a certain week in June, the date shifts each year.
Father’s Day gift ideas
See USA TODAY’s many gift guides for dads here.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: When is Father’s Day 2026? Date, origin story for the holiday
Reporting by Kaycee Sloan and Haadiza Ogwude, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
