|
Presidents Day is a national holiday in honor of the first president of the United States, George Washington, and there are stories about him that are still spoken of today. The cherry tree incident comes to mind. He became famous for telling the truth at all costs, and there is a tale of when he was a child. He was confronted by his father about the felled cherry tree, and it is told that he said, “I cannot tell a lie. I chopped down the cherry tree.”
Celebrated on the third Monday in February, it also honors veterans and Purple Heart recipients. In the 1980’s Presidents Day came to honor Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth president of the United States, as well. And in Massachusetts, this day honors all presidents with Massachusetts roots, such as John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Calvin Coolidge, and John F. Kennedy. In Connecticut, Missouri, and Illinois, they celebrate Lincoln’s birthday on February 12th, as well as President’s Day. And in Virginia, where George Washington was born, the legal holiday name is George Washington Day. And in Alexandria, Virginia, the celebration is a month long, and it includes the country’s longest George Washington Birthday parade. And in Florida, they celebrate George Day in Eustis, and they’ve been doing this since 1902.
There are various tales of “George Washington slept here” around the country. Perhaps some of the people at this Presidents Day gathering have a tale of one of these historic places. Apparently, there are motels, homes, and shacks across the country with the notation “George Washington slept here.”
|
