The first celebration using the name “Veterans Day” was held in Birmingham, Alabama, on November 11, 1947, organized by World War II veteran Raymond Weeks as a “National Veterans Day” event to honor all veterans.

Key timeline

  • 1919 – Armistice Day begins
    November 11 was first observed in 1919 as Armistice Day , marking the first anniversary of the armistice that ended World War I and honoring those who served in that war.
  • 1947 – First “Veterans Day” celebration
    Raymond Weeks organized the first large-scale celebration called “National Veterans Day” in Birmingham, Alabama, on November 11, 1947, including a parade and ceremonies to honor all U.S. veterans, not just those of World War I.
  • 1954 – Name officially changed
    In 1954, after World War II and the Korean War, the U.S. government officially changed the name of the November 11 federal holiday from Armistice Day to Veterans Day, making it the nationwide day to honor all American veterans.

So, if the question is “when was the first Veterans Day celebrated,” the specific first event using that name was in 1947 , while the broader tradition of November 11 military remembrance dates back to Armistice Day in 1919.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.