Presidents' Day, also known as Washington's Birthday, is a national holiday in the United States of America celebrated on the third Monday of February. It is an amalgamation of two previous holidays, Lincoln's Birthday (February 12) and Washington's Birthday (February 22).
In recent years Presidents' Day has become well-known for being a day in which many stores hold sales.
Observance on the third Monday of February dates to the Monday Holidays Act of 1968, which became effective in 1971. A draft of that bill called for a Presidents' Day to honor both Washington and Lincoln, but the final version only moved Washington's Birthday from February 22 to the third Monday without changing its name. In 1971, President Richard Nixon issued a proclamation calling for a Presidents' Day on the third Monday to honor all US presidents, but that did not have the force of law. As of 2003, the federal government still refers to the holiday as Washington's Birthday, while many state and local governments and private employers refer to it as Presidents' Day.
Presidents' Day is the common name for the United States federal holiday officially designated as Washington's Birthday; it is celebrated on the third Monday of February.
There is an urban legend that in 1971, President Richard Nixon issued a proclamation calling for a Presidents' Day on the third Monday to honor all U.S. presidents, but no evidence of this exists in his official papers.
In American schools the days leading up to the holiday are often used to educate students on the history of the Presidents of the United States, especially Washington and Lincoln.