From the Census Bureau's website, here are some facts about Father's Day and fathers:
The idea of Father's Day was conceived slightly more than a century ago by Sonora Dodd of Spokane, Wash., while she listened to a Mother's Day sermon in 1909. Dodd wanted a special day to honor her father, William Smart, a widowed Civil War veteran who was left to raise his six children on a farm. A day in June was chosen for the first Father's Day celebration — 101 years ago, June 19, 1910, proclaimed by Spokane's mayor because it was the month of Smart's birth. The first presidential proclamation honoring fathers was issued in 1966 when President Lyndon Johnson designated the third Sunday in June as Father's Day. Father's Day has been celebrated annually since 1972 when President Richard Nixon signed the public law that made it permanent.
154,000 - Estimated number of stay-at-home dads in 2010. These married fathers with children younger than 15 have remained out of the labor force for at least one year primarily so they can care for the family while their wives work outside the home. These fathers cared for 287,000 children. Source: America's Families and Living Arrangements <http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/hh-fam.html>
1.8 million - Number of single fathers in 2010; 15 percent of single parents were men. Source: America's Families and Living Arrangements <http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/hh-fam.html>
70.1 million - Estimated number of fathers across the nation. Source: Unpublished data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation
For more facts and information, visit the Census Bureau website. The Arkansas State Library is an affiliate of the State Data Center at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, part of the Census Bureau network in the states. We have census information for past years, and our librarians can provide individual training on using the Census Bureau databases. If you have any questions, please call the Reference Desk at (501) 682-2053, or send a question through the Ask a Librarian form.
