My Train of Thought

ALL ABOARD!

When I was growing up, we never had such a thing called Presidents’ Day. In fact, we celebrated Abe Lincoln’s birthday on February 12. And George Washington was also observed on his birthday of February 22. Now while we respected the birthdays of our two Presidents, they were NOT holidays or days off from school.

Sen. Robert McClory

So now comes the time to ask the who, what, where, when, and why of this change. For the WHO, it all began back in the 1960s, when Senator Robert McClory of Illinois brought a proposal to Congress known as the UNIFORM MONDAY HOLIDAY ACT . This law would take several holidays from their normally celebrated dates and move them to certain Mondays as determined by the Congress.

The WHY may be obvious for many – this was a way to create more three-day weekends for the nation’s work force. And it was also believed that by having a uniform date for the observances for this and other holidays, employee absenteeism would be reduced. Not everyone was in favor of this change. Moving holidays from their original dates would decrease the importance or significance of the observance. But support for having a uniform date for certain holidays was greatly supported by private businesses and labor unions, and retailers thought it was another means to increase sales.

Regarding the WHAT, the Uniform Monday Holiday Act was a chance to recognize both presidents at the same time. Illinois had already been observing Lincoln’s birthday as a holiday. While the holiday name hadn’t been decided on, McClory thought PRESIDENTS DAY seemed appropriate. But that didn’t sit well with the Virginia lawmakers, who claimed the birth right of the Father of the Country.

As to the WHEN, The Act was passed in 1968, however, it didn’t take effect until 1971 when President Nixon issued an executive order making it so. In addition, Nixon’s order also moved Columbus Day, Memorial Day, and Veterans Day from their original dates.

Closeup of Executive Order

It should be noted though that public disapproval returned Veterans’ Day back to November 11.

The WHERE involved finding a compromise, so it was decided that the 3^rd Monday in February would be the agreed upon date for the celebration. This would place it between both Presidential birthdays. By the mid-1980s, most Americans felt Presidents’ Day was Washington’s birthday. Thus it was dubbed with that name.

Now that you know, if you didn’t before, that Presidents’ Day is a federal holiday, what does this mean? Many government offices will be closed on that day.

The USPS (United States Postal Service) won’t be delivering mail to you. If you still need to send something off, UPS will be in full service while FedEx will only do home deliveries.

The banks, which includes the Federal Reserve Banks will be closed also. Many public schools will be closed as well as private schools. Some may incorporate this into what is referred to as the “Mid-Winter Break”.

You won’t be doing any stock trading as the New York Stock Exchange will also be closed. Depending on where you live, garbage pickup may be postponed for a day. The DMV and Courts will not be open.