FORGOTTEN TRIVIA FROM FIVE CHIEF EXECUTIVES

Happy Presidents’ Day. Or President’s Day. Or Washington’s & Lincoln’s Birthday. Take your pick. This holiday is known by all those names, depending on your state.

Officially, Uncle Sam calls it Washington’s Birthday (according to the Uniform Monday Holiday Act of 1968) with its observance mandated for the third Monday in February. But Washington’s actual birthday is February 22, which never falls on the third Monday. Since it’s ridiculous to celebrate George’s birthday before the fact, and since Nancy Lincoln conveniently delivered Abraham on February 12, Americans gloss over this minor inconsistency by splitting the difference and saying the holiday celebrates all presidents. (Much the same way your parents told you, “Every day is Children’s Day.”) Continue reading →