I hope you all are enjoying your President’s Day. Or at least many of you are enjoying a day off. Did you know “President’s Day” isn’t even the official title of this holiday? Here are some things I bet you didn’t know.

1. Nationally, this holiday was created to celebrate George Washington’s birthday. States started calling it “Presidents Day” and I guess the name stuck.
2. The holiday was first celebrated unofficially while George Washington was still alive. It wasn’t till 1885 that Chester Arthur made it an official national holiday
3. Back when it was still called “Washington’s Birthday,” the custom was to make lots of foods using cherries, especially cherry pie. This was an allusion to the fable of little George chopping down a cherry tree.
4. Although Lincoln’s birthday isn’t officially part of Presidents Day/Washington’s Birthday, he is the second president most associated with today. Some states celebrate Lincoln’s birthday separately on February 12th.
5. Richard Nixon was the one who promoted the idea of celebrating all the Presidents on Presidents Day.
6. In the 1980′s, retailers started using Presidents Day weekend to clear out old inventory for the new spring season. Hence “The President’s Day Sale.”