Father’s Day didn’t catch on right away. Back in the early 1900s, a lot of men thought a holiday like Mother’s Day was a little too sentimental. Some poked fun at the idea of flowers and gifts, while others figured it was just another excuse for stores to sell more stuff—often with Dad paying for it himself.

The first known Father’s Day was held in Fairmont, West Virginia, on July 5, 1908. Grace Golden Clayton organized it after the nation’s deadliest mining disaster claimed the lives of hundreds of men. The day honored those fathers and all dads.

A year later, Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington, helped bring the idea to a wider audience. Inspired by Mother’s Day, she wanted to honor her father, William Jackson Smart, a Civil War veteran and farmer who raised six children on his own after his wife died in childbirth.

Thanks to Dodd’s efforts, Spokane celebrated the first official Father’s Day on June 19, 1910. Boys from the YMCA handed out roses, gifts were delivered to disabled fathers, and local ministers focused their sermons on fatherhood.

Congress first considered making Father’s Day official in 1913, but the effort stalled. President Calvin Coolidge later backed the idea, saying it would strengthen the bond between fathers and their children.

In 1966, President Lyndon Johnson declared the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day. Then, in 1972, President Richard Nixon signed the law making it a permanent national holiday. Sonora Smart Dodd lived long enough to see it happen, passing away six years later at age 96.