Presidents Day

The Story Behind Our Four-day Break
by Bob Chan

Washington's Birthday is the official name designated to what many of us know as President's Day. During the month of February the birthday of two of our greatest President's takes place: George Washington, who was born on Feb. 22nd, and Abraham Lincoln, born on Feb. 12th.

However, Washington's birthday has been publicly celebrated since he was in office, before Abraham Lincoln was even born. Much of the debate over the name of the holiday springs from the fact that states can follow their own holidays how they see fit and many of them chose to also honor Lincoln, calling the celebration President's Day.

It was in 1968 that the term President's Day came up for legal consideration in the Congress but was shot down, though the holiday was moved to fall between the two President's birthdays. Again in the 1980's there was a resurgence of the term with advertisers which solidified the holiday name in American culture. Today, few Americans prefer to call the holiday Washington's Birthday in lieu of President's Day. Washington's Birthday is a United States federal holiday celebrated on the third Monday of February