Why we celebrate Presidents Day
Monday is Presidents Day — or "Washington's Birthday," depending on where you are.
The holiday was established nationwide in 1885 to recognize George Washington's birthday on Feb. 22. In 1971, however, the observance was officially moved to the third Monday in February each year as part of the Uniform Monday Holiday Act — an effort to align federal holidays with the weekend, and in theory, cut back on employees taking a day off work in the middle of the week.
The bill also included a provision to include Abraham Lincoln's birthday, Feb. 12, to the holiday. While it's still officially called "Washington's Birthday" almost every state now refers to the holiday as "Presidents Day," and so it's now used as a day to observe all of the nation's presidents.
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