ers ’ Day in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by Mary Towles Sasseen and Frank Herring .
But the Mother ’ s Day we know today is a direct descendant of an event organized by Ann Jarvis ’ s daughter , Anna .
Ann Jarvis died in 1905 , and in May 1908 , with the financial backing of John Wanamaker , Anna Jarvis of Philadelphia organized the first official Mother ’ s Day celebration at her late mother ’ s church , Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church in Grafton , W . Va . The same day also saw thousands of people attend a Mother ’ s Day event at one of Wanamaker ’ s retail stores in Philadelphia , according to History . com .
“ Following the success of her first Mother ’ s Day , Jarvis — who remained unmarried and childless her whole life — resolved to see her holiday added to the national calendar ,” the History . com article reads . “ Arguing that American holidays were biased toward male achievements , she started a massive letter writing campaign to newspapers and prominent politicians urging the adoption of a special day honoring motherhood .”
By 1912 many states , towns and churches had adopted Mother ’ s Day as an annual holiday , and in 1914 President Woodrow Wilson officially established the holiday as the second Sunday in May .
The site of Jarvis ’ s first Mother ’ s Day celebration , Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church , was incorporated as the International Mother ’ s Day Shrine on May 15 , 1962 , as a shrine for all mothers .
But Anna Jarvis did not enjoy her victory for long .
“ Anna Jarvis had originally conceived of Mother ’ s Day as a day of personal celebration between mothers and families ,” History . com reads . “ Her version of the day involved wearing a white carnation as a badge and visiting one ’ s mother or attending church services . But once Mother ’ s Day became a national holiday , it was not long before florists , card companies and other merchants capitalized on its popularity .
“ While Jarvis had initially worked with the floral industry to help raise Mother ’ s Day ’ s profile , by 1920 she had become disgusted with how the holiday had been commercialized ,” the article reads . “ She outwardly denounced the transformation and
urged people to stop buying Mother ’ s Day flowers , cards and candies .”
Jarvis spoke out against confectioners , florists , even charities that used Mother ’ s Day in fund-raising efforts . She filed lawsuits against groups that used the name “ Mother ’ s Day ,” eventually spending most of her personal wealth in legal fees , History . com says .
Anna Jarvis died in 1948 , and by then she had disowned Mother ’ s Day altogether and had lobbied the government to remove it from the calendar .
Today , Mother ’ s Day is celebrated in many nations around the world , some on the same day as in the United States . Other countries have adjusted their celebrations to fit into their own traditions .
The holiday is similar to a religious holiday called Mothering Sunday , celebrated on the fourth Sunday of Lent . Mothering Sunday , which dates to the Middle Ages , was originally seen as a time when Christians would return to their “ mother church ” — the main church in the vicinity of their home — for a special service , according to History . com and Brittanica . com . The more modern Mother ’ s Day has supplanted Mothering Sunday in some countries , but in others the older holiday remains strong .
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