Washington's Birthday
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Washington's
Birthday is a United
States federal
holiday celebrated on the third Monday of February in honor of George Washington, the first President of the
United States, and is also often called Presidents' Day. Both Lincoln's and Washington's birthdays are in
February.[1]
History
Titled George
Washington's Birthday, a federal holiday honoring George Washington was originally implemented by
an Act of Congress in
1879 for government offices in Washington (20 Stat. 277) and expanded in 1885 to include all federal
offices (23 Stat. 516). As the first federal holiday to honor
American citizens, the holiday was celebrated on Washington's actual birthday,
February 22.[2] On January 1, 1971, the federal holiday
was shifted to the third Monday in February by the Uniform Monday
Holiday Act.[3] This date places it between February 15
and 21, which makes the name "Washington's Birthday" in some sense a
misnomer, since it never occurs on Washington's actual birthday, either
February 11 (Old Style), or February 22 (New Style).
The first
attempt to create a generic Presidents Day occurred in 1951 when the
"President's Day National Committee" was formed by Harold Stonebridge Fischer of Compton, California,
who became its National Executive Director for the next two decades. The
purpose was not to honor any particular President but to honor the office of
the Presidency. It was first thought that March 4, the original inauguration
day, should be deemed Presidents Day. However, the bill recognizing the March 4
date was stalled in the Senate Judiciary
Committee (which had authority over federal holidays). That
committee felt that, because of its proximity to Lincoln's and Washington's
Birthdays, three holidays so close together would be unduly burdensome.[citation needed]
During this time, however, the Governors of a majority of the individual states
issued proclamations declaring March 4 to be Presidents' Day in their
respective jurisdictions.
An early draft
of the Uniform Monday
Holiday Act would have renamed the holiday to "Presidents'
Day" to honor the birthdays of both Washington and Lincoln, which would explain why the chosen date
falls between the two, but this proposal failed in committee, and the bill as
voted on and signed into law on June 28, 1968, kept the name Washington's
Birthday.
By the
mid-1980s, with a push from advertisers, the term "Presidents' Day"
began its public appearance.[4] Although Lincoln's birthday,
February 12, was never a federal holiday, approximately a dozen state
governments have officially renamed their Washington's Birthday observances as
"Presidents' Day", "Washington and Lincoln Day", or other
such designations. However, "Presidents' Day" is not always an
all-inclusive term.
- In Massachusetts, the state officially
celebrates "Washington's Birthday" on the same day as the
Federal holiday. State law also directs the governor to issue an annual
"Presidents Day" proclamation on May 29 (John F. Kennedy's birthday), honoring the
presidents with Massachusetts roots: Kennedy, John Adams, John Quincy Adams,
and Calvin Coolidge.[5]
- In Connecticut, Missouri and Illinois, while Washington's Birthday is a
federal holiday, Abraham Lincoln's birthday is still a state holiday,
falling on February 12 regardless of the day of the week.
- In
Washington's home state of Virginia, the holiday
is legally known as "George Washington Day."
Observance and traditions
Today, the
February holiday has become well known for being a day in which many stores,
especially car dealers, hold sales. Until the late 1980s, corporate businesses
generally closed on this day, similar to present corporate practices on Memorial Day or Christmas Day. With the late
1980s advertising push to rename the holiday, more and more businesses are
staying open on the holiday each year, and, as on Veterans Day and Columbus Day, most delivery services outside of
the U.S. Postal
Service now offer regular service on the day as well. Some public
transit systems have also gone to regular schedules on the day. Many colleges
and universities hold regular classes and operations on Presidents' Day.
Various theories exist for this, one accepted reason being to make up for the
growing trend of corporations to close in observance of the Birthday of Martin
Luther King, Jr. However, when reviewing the Uniform Monday Holiday
Bill debate of 1968 in the Congressional Record, one notes that supporters of
the Bill were intent on moving federal holidays to Mondays to promote business.
Consequently,
some schools, which used to close for a single day for both Lincoln's and
Washington's birthday, now often close for the entire week (beginning with the
Monday holiday) as a "mid-winter recess". For example, the New York
City school district began doing so in the 1990s.
The federal
holiday Washington's Birthday honors the accomplishments of the man known as
"The Father of his Country". Celebrated for his leadership in the
founding of the nation, he was the Electoral
College's unanimous choice to become the first President; he was
seen as a unifying force for the new republic and set an example for future
holders of the office.
The holiday is
also a tribute to the general who created the first military badge of merit for
the common soldier. Revived on Washington's 200th birthday in 1932, the Purple Heart medal (which bears Washington's
image) is awarded to soldiers who are injured in battle. As with Memorial Day and Veterans Day, Washington's Birthday offers
another opportunity to honor the country's veterans.
Community
celebrations often display a lengthy heritage. Washington's hometown of
historic Alexandria, Virginia,
hosts a month-long tribute, including the longest running George Washington
Birthday parade, while the community of Eustis, Florida, continues its annual
"George Fest" celebration begun in 1902. In Denver, Colorado there is a society dedicated to observing the
day.[6] At the George Washington Birthplace
National Monument in Westmoreland
County, Virginia, and at Mount Vernon, visitors are treated to birthday
celebrations throughout the federal holiday weekend and through February 22.
In Alabama the third Monday in February commemorates
the birthdays of both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson (who was born in April).[7]
In Arkansas the third Monday in February is
"George Washington's Birthday and Daisy
Gatson Bates Day," an official state holiday.
In New Mexico Presidents' Day, at least as a state
government paid holiday, is observed on the Friday following
Thanksgiving.[8]
In 2007 the
country celebrated both Washington's 275th birthday and the 75th anniversary of
the rebirth of the Purple Heart medal.
Since 1862
there has been a tradition in the United States Senate
that George Washington's Farewell Address[9] be read on his birthday. Citizens had
asked that this be done in light of the approaching Civil War. The annual
tradition continues with the reading of the address on or near Washington's
Birthday.
Spelling
Because
"Presidents' Day" is not the official name of the federal holiday,
there is variation in how it is rendered. Both "Presidents Day" and
"Presidents' Day" are common today, and both are considered correct
by dictionaries and usage manuals. "Presidents' Day" was once the
predominant style, and it is still favored by the majority of significant
authorities — notably, The Chicago Manual
of Style (followed by most book publishers and some magazines), The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language,
Webster's
Third International Dictionary, and Garner's Modern
American Usage. In recent years, as the use of attributive nouns (nouns acting as modifiers) has
become more widespread, the popularity of "Presidents Day" has increased.[10] This style is favored by the Associated Press
Stylebook (followed by most newspapers and some magazines) and the
Writer's Digest Grammar Desk Reference (ISBN 978-1582973357).
"President's
Day" is a misspelling when used with the intention of celebrating more
than one individual (see also apostrophe); however, as
an alternate rendering of "Washington's Birthday," or as denominating
the commemoration of the presidency as a singular institution, it is a proper
spelling of a possessive.
Indeed, this spelling was considered for use as the official federal
designation by Robert McClory, a
congressman from Illinois who was tasked with getting the 1968 federal holiday
reorganization bill through the House Judiciary Committee. Nonetheless, while
Washington's Birthday was originally established to honor George Washington, the term "Presidents
Day" was informally coined in a deliberate attempt to use the holiday to
honor multiple presidents and is virtually always used that way today.[4] Though "President's Day" is
sometimes seen in print,[11] — even sometimes on government Web
sites,[12] this style is not endorsed by any
major dictionary or usage authority.
The original wiki link on the subject
can be found at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington%27s_Birthday
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