For many people, Presidents’ Day is just another holiday that allows us to get a day off from school and work. Over the years, this holiday has raised many questions such as “Why do we celebrate it, what presidents are we celebrating, and whose birthday is it?”

  This federal holiday was established by Congress in 1885 to recognize the birthday of our first president George Washington, who was born February 22, 1732. The first year that the holiday was held was the year after he died in 1800 to remember the impact he made on America. At the time, Washington was thought of as the most important figure in U.S. history, and he needed to be remembered in some way. The start of the construction of the Washington Monument in 1848 caused a national celebration. Originally celebrated exclusively in the District of Columbia, it was expanded in 1885. At that time, Washington’s Birthday joined four other nationally recognized federal bank holidays- Christmas, New Year’s, the Fourth of July, and Thanksgiving. This was the first federal holiday to celebrate the life of an individual American. 

  In 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Bill, which moved a number of federal holidays to Mondays. The change was designed to schedule certain holidays so that workers had a number of long weekends throughout the year. During debate on the bill, it was proposed that Washington’s Birthday be renamed Presidents’ Day. Abraham Lincoln’s birthday also happened to fall closeby on February 12, and although it was always celebrated, it was never made an official holiday. Considering Lincoln’s huge impact on reshaping the U.S., many people wanted to honor him as well. Following much discussion, Congress rejected the name change. After the bill went into effect in 1971, Presidents’ Day became the common name, due to retailers’ use of that name to promote sales. 

 In the weeks or days leading up to the holiday, schools often organize events and lessons for students about the presidents of the United States and George Washington in particular. This holiday was created to celebrate all Presidents and how far America has come since the first Presidential election. Junior Grayson Moore said, “Being a president requires persistent leadership and responsibility. Presidents have a lot of weight on their shoulders, and their best interest is always in the best interest of their people. This is why I think Presidents’ Day is a respectful holiday and should be celebrated by more people.”

  Some fun ways to celebrate this Presidents’ Day are to make crafts, do some research, and even take a virtual tour of past presidents’ lives. It is always important to remember how much we have grown as a country, and there is still more to go. Being president is a hard job, and it takes a lot of bravery and deserves to be celebrated.