COLUMBIA, S.C. — It's Veterans Day, the time set aside each year to pay tribute to America's men and women who have served in the military.
Veterans Day first took place on November 11, 1919, when then President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed it a holiday.
"To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations," he wrote.
At first, it was known as Armistice Day to pay tribute to the end of World War I. During the war, 116,000 American soldiers died. That war, famously, ended on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918.
For the next several decades, Armistice Day would honor those only those who fought in that conflict.
In 1954, however, President Dwight Eisenhower signed a bill into law to honor all veterans on the day, following a grass-roots campaign to make sure all who served got their proper tribute.
Most recently, President Barack Obama signed a 'Veterans Day Moment of Silence Act.'
Since its signing in October 2016, the country observes two minutes of silence at 3:11 in the afternoon to reflect on our freedom and those who fought to get us here.
The Department of Veterans Affairs reports there are 402,596 veterans in South Carolina.
To all the veterans, we salute you!