President's Day
On the third Monday of February the United States honors all of its presidents;
but, originally President's Day was set aside as a day to celebrate the birthdays of two great
American presidents: Abraham Lincoln and George Washington.
George Washington, who was born on February 22, 1732, was the first elected
president of the United States. As the Father of His Country Washington helped shape the United
States in several very important ways. First, he served as the Commander in Chief of the
Continental Army that fought for, and won, independence from
Great Britain for the 13 original colonies in the Revolutionary War. Secondly, Washington served
as President of the Constitutional Convention that wrote the Constitution of the United States.
Washington is the only president in the history of the U.S. to be elected
president by unanimous vote. He served two terms and declined a third. George Washington
died on December 14, 1799 at the age of 67. One popular legend about Washington says that as a
boy he chopped down his father's cherry tree. When his father questioned him about it, he
admitted to the wrongdoing and said I cannot tell a lie.
Lincoln was the 16th president of the United States and is credited with
keeping the U.S. together as one country. Lincoln was president during the difficult time
in America's history known as the Civil War. Just before Lincoln began his term as president,
seven southern states broke away from the United States and formed their own country. This
new country was known as the Confederate States of America. President Lincoln was able to
end the conflict and reunite the country.
Lincoln is also responsible for ending slavery in the United States. In his
famous speech, The Gettysburg Address, Lincoln expressed his views about equality
and his belief that all men should be free. On January 1, 1863, President Lincoln issued the
Emancipation Proclamation which freed all slaves in America. Two years later the 13th Amendment
to the Constitution ended slavery in all parts of the United States.
President Lincoln was assassinated on April 19th, 1865, while watch a play in
Ford's Theater in Washington, D.C.
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For source information go to my Bibliography page.
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President's Day.
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