How many U. S. presidents had or have birthdays in February

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How many U. S. presidents had or have birthdays in February

2017-02-21 14:59

Answer: Four, including George Washington (February 22, 1732), William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773), Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809), and Ronald Reagan (February 6, 1911).

The U. S. presidents with February birthdays are George Washington (February 22, 1732), William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773), Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809), and Ronald Reagan (February 6, 1911).

The holiday that many states celebrate now as “President’s Day” has its origins in commemorations of George Washington’s birthday (February 22) that started in 1800, a year after he passed away. Celebrated unofficially for decades, it wasn’t until 1885 that the federal government recognized Washington’s birthday as an official holiday. For close a century after, Washington’s birthday was celebrated every February 22nd.

In 1971, the government moved this yearly remembrance to the third Monday in February as part of the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which established more three-day weekends for American workers. Officially, the holiday is still known as “Washington’s Birthday,” however, we now observe it as President’s Day.  

Scattered among HSP’s autograph collections, such as the Simon Gratz collections (#250A and #250B), the Ferdinand J. Dreer collection (#1750), and the Society autograph collection (#22) are letters from past presidents, such as George Washington, John Adams, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt. HSP also owns a collection of autograph letters of the Presidents of the United States (Am .1275) and numerous published sources on the presidency in the library.

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