With Veterans Day on Tuesday, deals and events abound through the weekend and into the week around the Chattanooga area in honor of former and current military personnel.
The history of the holiday stretches back over a century to the aftermath of “the war to end all wars.” While the Treaty of Versailles officially ended World War I in June 1919, fighting had ended seven months prior when an armistice “went into effect on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month,” according to a timeline on the Department of Veterans Affairs website.
In November 1919, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Nov. 11 as Armistice Day to honor the veterans of World War I, with it becoming a legal holiday in 1938, the timeline said.
In 1954, following World War II and the fighting of “aggression in Korea,” Congress amended the act that established Armistice Day, changing the holiday to Veterans Day to honor veterans of all wars, the timeline said. In 1968, the Uniform Holiday Bill established three-day weekends for federal employees for four national holidays on Mondays, Veterans Day being among the four. According to the timeline, this was not a popular decision, and so President Gerald Ford signed a law to return observance of Veterans Day to Nov. 11, which went into effect in 1978.
Here’s a look at some of the ways businesses and organizations around Chattanooga are recognizing Veterans Day.