05/01/2025
Grafton prepares for the annual observance of Mother’s Day
GRAFTON—Mother's Day began in Grafton, Taylor County, West Virginia. The first official observance was on Sunday, May 10, 1908, at what was then Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church. The church continued annual observances until its last service at the Main Street building on Jan. 7, 1967. The Andrews congregation became part of the Church of the Good Shepherd United Methodist and moved to a new church home along Lucas Dairy Road, just off Route 50 in Grafton.
Not wanting to see the historic structure abandoned, a non-profit was chartered on May 15, 1962, to acquire ownership of the Andrews church property and convert it into a shrine to all mothers everywhere, honoring Anna Jarvis as the founder of Mother’s Day and Ann Reeves Jarvis as the originator. Today, the International Mother’s Day Shrine Board of Trustees owns and operates this National Historic Landmark.
It was here, when daughter Anna was 12 years old, that Mrs. Jarvis led a Sunday School lesson on mothers of the Bible and ended with a plea for someone, sometime, somewhere to establish a day honoring mothers.
When Mrs. Jarvis died in 1905, the church bell tolled 72 times, once for each year of her life. Standing at the foot of her mom’s grave, daughter Anna pledged to fulfill her mom’s wish for a Mother’s Day. On the second Sunday in May 1906, she had the Andrews church conduct a memorial service honoring Ann Reeves Jarvis for her service as a longtime Sunday School teacher and superintendent of the infant department at the church. In May 2007, the church informally honored mothers and passed a resolution supporting Anna’s drive to have the second Sunday of May recognized as Mother’s Day. Finally, on May 10, 1908, the church hosted the first official observance of Mother’s Day. They followed detailed instructions from Anna, outlining how the day was to be observed.
Following the success of the inaugural Mother’s Day in Grafton and an afternoon observance in Philadelphia, PA, Anna wrote state governors seeking proclamations recognizing the Second Sunday of May as Mother’s Day. She also contacted members of Congress and the President seeking official recognition of the new holiday. Some six years later, on May 8, 1914, the United States Congress approved a joint resolution endorsing the observance of Mother’s Day. On May 9, 1914, President Woodrow Wilson issued the national proclamation making Mother’s Day an official and recurring national holiday honoring all mothers. With this certification, Anna fulfilled her pledge to her mom and accomplished her mom’s dream of a national day honoring mothers. It all started in the little Appalachian town of Grafton, West Virginia. Here is where Mother’s Day began and where it continues.
The public is invited to the annual Mother’s Day observance at 11 a.m. on Sunday, May 11. The Church of the Good Shepherd United Methodist will return to the historic structure at 11 East Main Street in downtown Grafton to conduct a service similar to the one that kicked things off on May 10, 1908. Following the annual service, the shrine will be open until 5 p.m. so the public can take tours and see where Mother’s Day began. Take a walk-through history at this National Historic Landmark.
