It is the day we honor veterans of all wars, but it began at the end of World War I.
World War I officially ended on June 28, 1919, with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, but the actual fighting between the Allies and Germany had already ended seven months earlier with the armistice--which went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918.
November 11.
President Woodrow Wilson declared November 11, 1919 "Armistice Day" to honor the sacrifices the men and women made during the war. Because World War I, at the time, had been known as the "war to end all wars." Other countries today still recognize November 11th as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day in honor of the Armistice treaty which ended WWI.
Armistice Day officially became a holiday in the United States in 1926, and in 1938, Congress voted it a federal holiday.
Then World War II happened.
Armistice Day came to symbolize the sacrifices made by veterans of all wars. In 1953 the residents of Emporia, Kansas called the holiday Veterans' Day in gratitude to all the veterans in their town. On June 1, 1954, Congress passed a bill introduced by a Kansas congressman that officially changed the name from Armistice Day to Veterans' Day.
For several years in the 1970s, Veterans Day was observed in October by many states but in 1978 it was returned to November 11th.
On Veterans' Day and Memorial Day, veterans' groups raise funds for their charitable activities by selling paper poppies made by disabled veterans. This bright red wildflower became a symbol of World War I after a bloody battle in a field of poppies called Flanders Field in Belgium.
Thank you to all the veterans--and those serving now--for keeping America free.
And here are three interesting sites I found (thanks to "I Heart Daily's newsletter--check out iheartdaily.com) about recycling that leftover Halloween candy by sending it to our troops. (I also just saw a piece in my local newspaper about a dentist collecting leftover Halloween candy for just this purpose.)
Soldiers often request candy and sweets in their care packages. But no chocolate, since it melts :) This is a perfect Veterans' Day activity, coming so close on the heels of Halloween--and Christmas isn't all that far behind.
Operation Gratitude
Operation Gratitude's Halloween Candy Buyback Program
Links:
History
Celebrate Veterans' Day -- history and origin of the holiday
Veterans' Day --history and meaning
History.com
Infoplease--lots of links
History of Veteran's Day (more kid-friendly)
US Dept of Veterans' Affairs -- history, teacher's guides
Celebrating America's Freedoms --lots of links to history, famous US documents on the subject of freedom from the Dept of Veterans' Affairs
Crafts, activities
US Department of Veterans Affairs Kids' Site
Veteran's History Project
Veterans Day Crafts, Projects, Worksheets, Books, and Printouts
Surfing the Net with Kids --Veteran's Day
Veterans' Day Printables
Veterans' Day Wordsearch
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