President Lyndon Johnson designated the third Sunday in June as Father's Day when he issued the first presidential proclamation honoring fathers in 1966. President Richard Nixon signed the public law that made it permanent in 1972, and the nation has celebrated the day every year since.

In observance of Father's Day this Sunday, here are some facts about dads across the nation and how we are celebrating them this weekend.

64.3 Million
Estimated number of fathers across the nation
Source: Survey of Income and Program Participation (unpublished tabulations)

25.8 Million
Number of fathers who were part of married-couple families with children younger than 18 in 2008; 22 percent raising three or more children younger than 18 (among married-couple family households only)
Source: America's Families and Living Arrangements, 2008

1.8 Million
Number of single fathers in 2008 (Among single parents living with their children, 16 percent are men); 8 percent raising three or more children younger than 18
Source: America's Families and Living Arrangements, 2008

85%
Among the 30.2 million fathers living with children younger than 18, the percentage who lived with their biological children only; 11 percent also living with stepchildren, 4 percent with adopted children and fewer than 1 percent with foster children
Source: Living Arrangements of Children, 2004

140,000
Estimated number of stay-at-home dads in 2008, the married fathers with children younger than 15 having remained out of the workforce for at least one year primarily so they can care for the family while their wives work outside the home
Source: America's Families and Living Arrangements, 2008

234,000
The number of children the 140,000 stay-at-home fathers cared for: 54 percent having two or more children, and 52 percent having had an annual family income of $50,000 or more
Source: America's Families and Living Arrangements, 2008

DAD-RELATED RETAIL

$9.4 Billion
Expected total spending for Father's Day this year, down from $9.6 billion in 2008
Source: National Retail Federation's 2009 Father's Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey

$90.89
Average amount Americans are expected to spend on gifts for the fathers in their life (dads, stepfathers, husbands, sons, grandfathers and brothers), down from $94.54 last year
Source: NRF's 2009 Father's Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey

$1.9 billion
People will likely spend this much on a special outing such as a dinner or even a sporting event for Father's Day. Other popular gift items will include: clothing such as socks, slacks and ties ($1.3 billion); gift cards ($1.2 billion); electronics ($1 billion); books or CDs ($548 million); home improvement items ($522 million) and sporting goods ($502 million).
Source: NRF's 2009 Father's Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey

14,012
Number of hardware stores (as of 2006) — a great place to buy hammers, wrenches, screwdrivers and other tools high on the list of Father's Day gifts for do-it-yourself dads
Source: County Business Patterns

23,270
Number of sporting goods stores in 2006, a good place to purchase traditional gifts such as fishing rods and golf clubs for outdoors dads
Source: County Business Patterns

9,003
Number of men's clothing stores around the country (as of 2006), a good place to buy dad a shirt or tie
Source: County Business Patterns

Although. . .

2/3
More than two-thirds of men recently said they never wear a tie to work — which helps explain why a year ago the Men's Dress Furnishings Association, the trade group representing America's necktie manufacturers for 60 years, announced it would be closing its doors for good.
Source: Gallup (2007) and The Wall Street Journal

"Along with the usual ties, gift givers will be looking into items that dad can enjoy with the whole family," NRF President and CEO Tracy Mullin said in a statement this month. "Retailers will offer specials on new grill sets, sporting and gardening equipment and even electronics as the holiday rolls around."

78 Million
Number of Americans who participated in a barbecue in the last year — it's probably safe to assume many of these barbecues took place on Father's Day.
Source: 2009 Statistical Abstract of the United States (Table 1200)

53% and 71%
Percentages of children younger than 6 who ate breakfast and dinner, respectively, with their father every day in 2006
Source: A Child's Day, 2006

36%
Percentage of children younger than 6 who had 15 or more outings with their father in the last month, as of 2006
Source: A Child's Day, 2006

6
Average times children ages 3 to 5 were read to by their fathers in the past week, as of 2006
Source: A Child's Day, 2006

Cheers.