When is Presidents Day 2024? What's open/closed and why we celebrate the federal holiday
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We're in the doldrums of winter, but there's a three-day holiday just around the corner for some.
Presidents Day is a federal holiday celebrated each year in the middle of February to honor past U.S. presidents.
Here’s when we celebrate Presidents Day and why:
When is Presidents Day?
This year, Presidents Day falls on Monday, Feb. 19, 2024.
The federal holiday is observed on the third Monday of February each year.
What is Presidents Day?
Officially known as Washington's Birthday, the first federal holiday of the year was originally meant to honor the country's first president, George Washington.
Washington was born in Virginia on Feb. 11, 1731, according to the then-used Julian calendar. In 1752, however, Britain and all its colonies adopted the Gregorian calendar, which moved his birthday a year and 11 days to Feb. 22, 1732.
Eventually, the holiday included honoring President Abraham Lincoln, whose birthday is Feb. 12.
The position of the holiday between the birthdays of Washington and Lincoln gave rise to the popular name of Presidents Day.
In 1885, Congress designated Feb. 22 as a holiday for all federal workers. Nearly a century later, in 1971, the Uniform Monday Holiday Law changed the date to the third Monday in February, according to the National Archives.
The Uniform Holiday Bill mandated that three holidays, including Presidents Day, occur on Mondays to prevent midweek shutdowns and add long weekends to the federal calendar.
Why do we celebrate Presidents Day?
The country celebrated the founding father's birthday long before Congress declared it a federal holiday, according to the National Archives.
Around the centennial of Washington's birthday, Congress established a joint committee to oversee festivities to honor the former president nationally.
On Feb. 22, 1832, the committee recommended Congress adjourn out of respect for Washington's memory and in commemoration of his birth.
Prompted by a memorial from the mayor and other citizens in Philadelphia, the House and Senate commemorated the 130th anniversary of Washington's birth by reading aloud his farewell address, according to the National Archives. Eventually, this event became a tradition in the Senate that is still observed to this day.
Washington's Birthday did not become a legal holiday until Jan. 31, 1879, when Congress added Feb. 22 to the list of holidays to be observed by federal employees in the District of Columbia. This did not become a paid holiday for all federal employees until 1885.
What is open on Presidents Day?
The post office, banks, the stock market and most schools will be closed on Presidents Day. Most retail and grocery stores will be open.
Who is off for Presidents Day?
Federal holidays are those observed by the federal government, so anyone who works for the federal government generally has the day off. Federal holidays may also be observed on Monday or Friday if they fall on a weekend.
Other federal holidays include:
New Year's Day (Jan. 1)
Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Third Monday in January)
Memorial Day (Last Monday in May)
Juneteenth (June 19)
Independence Day (July 4)
Labor Day (First Monday in September)
Columbus Day (Second Monday in October)
Veterans Day (Nov. 11)
Thanksgiving Day (Fourth Thursday of November)
Christmas Day (Dec. 25)
Clare Mulroy contributed to this story.
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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: What is closed on Presidents Day 2024 and why we celebrate the holiday
