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Two of our nation's greatest Presidents,
George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, were born in
February. For decades the birthdays of these two Presidents
were remembered, despite the fact that few Americans could
identify the birth date of any other of our Presidents.
President Washington's birthday was widely
celebrated during his presidency, and in the decades that followed
became a federal holiday. Celebration of his birth however,
caused some confusion. When Washington was born in 1732 the
American Colonies used the old Julian calendar, marking his
birthday as February 11. Subsequently, with the transition
to the Gregorian calendar, his birthday was identified as February
22. Therefore, in the 1800s, his birth was celebrated on two
different days by different groups, depending upon which calendar
they elected to use as their authority.
President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated
on April 15, 1865. The first formal observance of his birthday
came the following year and, like Washington's birthday, became a
traditional holiday though it did not achieve the formal status of
Federal recognition that Washington's birthday did.
In 1968 Congress passed legislation
(HR15951) to simplify the calendar of American holidays, the
result of which was to place most official observances on a
Monday, thereby creating a 3-day weekend and eliminating a
mid-week interruption. Washington's birthday was a part of
this legislation, setting the third Monday in February (regardless
of the date) aside as "Washington's Birthday."
Subsequently, that holiday has become known as "Presidents
Day," a holiday to remember all of our American
Presidents.
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