Who Started Mother’s Day in the United States 2023? Mother’s Day is a special day celebrated in honor of mothers all over the world. It is a day to show appreciation and gratitude to our moms for all the sacrifices they have made for us. But have you ever wondered who started Mother’s Day in the United States? In this article, we will explore the history of Mother’s Day and the person who started it all. The Origins of Mother’s Day The origins of Mother’s Day can be traced back to ancient Greek and Roman times. They celebrated a festival called Hilaria, which was dedicated to the mother goddess Cybele. In the 16th century, Mothering Sunday was celebrated in England, which was a day for people to visit their mothers and attend church services. However, the modern-day version of Mother’s Day was first celebrated in the United States. The credit for starting Mother’s Day in the US goes to Anna Jarvis. Who is Anna Jarvis? Anna Jarvis was born in 1864 in Grafton, West Virginia. She was the ninth of eleven children and her mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, was a social activist who cared for wounded soldiers during the Civil War. Ann Reeves Jarvis also organized Mothers’ Day Work Clubs to improve health and hygiene conditions in her community. After her mother’s death in 1905, Anna Jarvis wanted to honor her mother’s legacy and began campaigning for a national day to honor all mothers. She spent years lobbying politicians, businessmen, and religious leaders to make Mother’s Day a national holiday. When was the First Mother’s Day Celebrated? Finally, in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson signed a proclamation officially recognizing Mother’s Day as a national holiday. The first Mother’s Day was celebrated on May 9, 1914. The celebration of Mother’s Day quickly caught on and became a popular holiday in the United States. Anna Jarvis became known as the “Mother of Mother’s Day” and spent the rest of her life campaigning for the holiday. What Happened to Anna Jarvis? Unfortunately, Anna Jarvis did not live to see how popular Mother’s Day would become. She had become disillusioned with the commercialization of the holiday and the way it was being celebrated. She believed that the holiday should be a day for families to spend time together and to honor their mothers, not a day for buying gifts and cards. Anna Jarvis died in 1948, and she never married or had children of her own. She is buried next to her mother in West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania. Conclusion In conclusion, Anna Jarvis is the person who started Mother’s Day in the United States. She was inspired by her mother’s legacy and spent years campaigning for the holiday to be recognized nationally. Although she did not live to see how popular Mother’s Day would become, her legacy lives on. This year, let’s honor our mothers by spending time with them and showing them how much we appreciate them.