The holiday dates back to Nov. 11, 1918, which was the official end of World War I, when an armistice between the Allied nations and Germany started on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

On Veterans Day, you can expect most big retailers to remain open, but get your banking done, and your mail sent, before November 11, as those buildings will be closed.