President's Day

The original version of this American holiday was in commemoration of George Washington's birthday in 1796. By the early 19th century, Washington's Birthday had taken firm root in America as a bona fide national
holiday.
The first formal observance of Lincoln's birthday took place in 1865, when both houses of Congress gathered for a memorial address. While Lincoln's Birthday did not become a federal holiday like George Washington's, it did become a legal holiday in several states.
In 1971 President Richard Nixon proclaimed one single federal holiday, the Presidents' Day, to be observed on the third Monday of February, honoring all past presidents of the United States of America.
Go to the Biographies Feature page to find features full of book reviews about George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and several of the other Presidents of the United States.