Monday is Presidents’ Day, a federal and Missouri holiday

State employees packed Jefferson City’s Truman Building for the February 27, 2023 state employee pay bill-signing ceremony (file photo courtesy of Lt. Governor Mike Kehoe’s Twitter page)

Most of Jefferson City’s approximately 14,000 state employees are off on this Monday to observe President George Washington’s birthday, also known as Presidents’ Day.

It is a federal, Missouri state and county holiday. Some cities, but not all, are also observing the holiday. Banks and financial institutions are closed today, and there will be no regular mail delivery. Regular mail delivery resumes tomorrow. City of Columbia spokeswoman Sydney Olsen tells 939 the Eagle that city offices are open today, and Columbia’s city council meets tonight.

Then-President Richard Nixon signed the Uniform Monday Holiday law in 1971, which changed the Presidents’ Day holiday to the third Monday in February. George Washington served as the nation’s first President, from 1789 to 1797. In his farewell address, President Washington warned the country about permanent alliances with foreign nations.

Washington’s birthday is one of Missouri’s 13 official state holidays.