Every year on the third Monday in February, the country of the United States celebrates Presidents’ Day. The holiday was first called Washington’s Birthday and began on George Washington’s birthday (February 22) to celebrate him. However, the holiday changed when President Abraham Lincoln was killed in 1864. Lincoln was also born in February, and people wanted to have a holiday to remember him as well. Many people began to celebrate Lincoln on his birthday, February 12th, and also celebrate Washington on his birthday, February 22nd. In 1971, Congress decided to make the holiday simpler. It was decided that there would be one holiday called Washington’s Birthday, celebrated each year on the third Monday in February. To this day the holiday is officially called Washington’s Birthday, but most people call it President’s Day to remember Lincoln and other great presidents.

When you think of Presidents Day, what comes to mind? The long weekend? The Presidents’ Day sale at a store? Parties or events to celebrate? Sleeping in? There are numerous ways to spend your Presidents’ Day. This year, I recommend you learn a little about the lives of our U.S. presidents. Enjoy some intriguing facts below!

• Not all presidents were born in the United States! Martin Van Buren, our eighth president, was the first president to be born a United States citizen. (The first seven presidents were born before the American Revolution; therefore, they were all British subjects at birth.)
• The smallest president was James Madison at 5’4 ft and 100 lbs.
• The heaviest president was William Howard Taft at 6’0 ft and 300-340 lbs.
• The tallest president was Abraham Lincoln at 6’4 ft tall.
• Franklin D. Roosevelt was an Aquarius.
• Thomas Jefferson was the first person in North America to grow a tomato.
• Dwight Eisenhower was the only President to hold a pilot’s license.
• President Zachary Taylor never voted in a presidential election until he voted for himself.
• In 1880, Rutherford B. Hayes was the first president to visit the west coast.
• James Buchanan is the only president to never marry.
• John Tyler had the most kids of all the presidents with 15 children.
• No president has ever been an only child.

Enjoy your Presidents’ Day!

Works Cited

Encyclopædia Britannica. (n.d.). Gilbert Stuart: portrait of George Washington. [Image]. Britannica School. Retrieved January 27, 2022, from https://school.eb.com/levels/high/assembly/view/3059

Encyclopædia Britannica. (n.d.). Presidents’ Day. Britannica School. Retrieved January 19, 2022, from https://school.eb.com/levels/high/article/Presidents-Day/389228

Frank, S., & Melick, A. D. (1984). The presidents, tidbits & trivia. Greenwich House.

Inauguration 2013: Fun facts and figures. (2013, Jan 16). Washington Post Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/inauguration-2013-fun-facts-figures/docview/2262477026/se-2?accountid=4822

Schutte, A. (2003). Celebrate President’s Day!