a Presidents
Day
Primer !
Stephen Scarborough
Presidents Day is observed on Monday , February 20th this year . ( I get so angry that they start putting out all the President ’ s Day decorations and gifts for sale before THANKSGIVING . I mean , come on ….) Presidents Day originally started as Washington ’ s Birthday ( February 22nd ) the year after his death in 1799 . They missed him immediately , because of all he had sacrificed and the amazing , unifying way he led the country . I imagine we miss him even more today ….
It was initially celebrated in the District of Columbia , and then officially recognized in 1885 as the holiday “ Washington ’ s Birthday ,” which was celebrated nationally . It is still officially called “ Washington ’ s Birthday ” by the Federal Government . Why ? Probably because it is inefficient and unnecessarily confusing to do so .
Washington ’ s Birthday joined four other nationally recognized federal bank holidays – Christmas Day , New Year ’ s Day , Independence Day and
28 | WINTER GARDEN MAGAZINE | FEBRUARY 2017