Photo from the Nov. 11, 1918 Warren Morning Chronicle Celebration was the order of the day when news of the armistice ending the Great War started to percolate through Warren.

Warren County residents couldn’t have possibly realized as they woke up on Nov. 11, 1918 that they were witnessing the birth of a national holiday.

While there had been hints that the Great War – World War I – was on the brink of ending for weeks, that day was the day it came to fruition.

There was an appetite for information. Want proof?

The Warren Morning Chronicle – not the only newspaper in Warren County at that time – published at least seven editions on Nov. 11, 1918.

“The German delegates signed the armistice submitted by General Foch at 5 a.m. Paris time, or midnight American time,” their third edition detailed. “It was agreed that hostilities should cease at 11 a.m. Paris time.”

Breaking news — back when breaking news was spread via newsprint — of Armistice Day, the end of hostilities at the end of World War I.

The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month.

Details were sparse – the specific terms weren’t yet known. But the editors of the publication didn’t really seem to care.

“While no hint has been given by officials of the German delegates it is known that the conditions imposed upon the German people and their armies are fully as stringent as those to which Austria agreed,” what appears to be an editorial concluded.

“It may therefore be said safely that the war is over, for the armistice terms are such that in accepting them Germany virtually agreed to unconditional surrender and places her fate at the feet of the triumphant Allies.” In some quarters this morning it was stated that the signing of the armistice may prevent the utter destruction of law and order by anarchy in Germany, as it is possible that the Allied leaders and President Wilson may be able to send such word to the German people that they put down the Bolshevist factions now apparently growing in power.”

The idea of a communist takeover was also featured in a story on the front page of that edition: “Reds’ seize Berlin in reign of terror that sweeps country.” Local editors realized through that “dispatches are very conflicting.”

In a twist of irony, Germany didn’t fall to the communists but the exact opposite occurred in the proceeding 15 years – takeover by a far-right group that we now call the Nazis.

But optimsm ruled the day. No one could have seen that this war would, in many ways, be a warm up for a more destructive and deadly conflict.

“The signing of the armistice brings to the close the greatest war in the history of the human race,” the editors suggested. “In this war which… today passed into its 1,557th day, approximately $221,000,000,000 of the world’s treasurer and probably 8,000,000 lives have been brought to an untimely end.

“The great war brought suffering and torture to almost every village and hamlet in the world and has for all time saved civilization from the slavery of autocratic rule. From today onward through the ages the human race will determine its own methods of rule and the theory of the Divine right of chieftains can never again be employed.”

They were right in some sense that the idea of monarchy and royalty dominating the politics of Europe was brought to an end. But we now know that it was just replaced with authoritarianism in such a brutal form unlike anything the world had ever seen.

The reporters with the Morning Chronicle also reported the pulse of the community – “BEDLAM RAGES THROUGH CITY AS PEACE CAME.”

Fire trucks. A band. A party was truly underway.

“People yelled and cheered as they started downward to view the proceedings that had taken place,” the report details. “The Fire Department was notified of the news and they immediately started the fire bells ringing and the trucks rushed through the streets ringing out the bells and the sirens, waking up all the people in the town.”

“The Chronicle Extra,” they said in a touch of self-promotion, “appeared on the street a few minutes after the news was received and the people rushed eagerly to The Chronicle office to get one of the editions.”

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According to the VA, Congress made Nov. 11 a legal holiday and declared it Armistice Day in 1938 though prior commemorations had taken place on the day each year. “In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: ‘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….”‘

“Armistice Day was primarily a day set aside to honor veterans of World War I, but in 1954, after World War II had required the greatest mobilization of soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen in the Nation’s history; after American forces had fought aggression in Korea, the 83rd Congress, at the urging of the veterans service organizations, amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word ‘Armistice’ and inserting in its place the word ‘Veterans,'” the article added.

That cemented the shift from Armistice Day to Veterans Day.

That article indicates that the federal government tried to move the date in the late 1960s to facilitate three-day weekends for federal workers. Suffice it to say that idea flopped – many states ignored the change – and in 1975 President Gerald Ford signed legislation – the states and veteran organizations were supportive – to return Veterans Day to Nov. 11.

“Veterans Day continues to be observed on November 11, regardless of what day of the week on which it falls,” the VA explains. “The restoration of the observance of Veterans Day to November 11 not only preserves the historical significance of the date, but helps focus attention on the important purpose of Veterans Day: A celebration to honor America’s veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good.”