Presidents’ Day: What’s open and closed for the federal holiday

What stores and businesses are open and closed on Presidents’ Day

The day officially recognised George Washington’s birthday, although it now celebrates other presidents (Getty Images)

As Presidents’ Day rolls around for another year, many government offices and some private businesses will close on the third Monday in February.

The federal holiday is observed in the United States to commemorate the birthday of the nation’s first president, George Washington, and has been celebrated for over a century since it was established in 1879.

The day has since evolved to recognise all the presidents who have served time in office over the decades.

George Washington’s birthday falls on 22 February and was celebrated as a separate holiday for years, until 1968 when a bill was passed to move federal holidays to Mondays to create long weekends. The holiday was celebrated on the third Monday of February after implementing the Uniform Monday Holiday Act in 1971.

While the holiday still officially recognises the day as a celebration of Washington’s birthday, some reformers wanted to change the day to Presidents’ Day to honour Abraham Lincoln as well.

This reform was rejected, but the name ‘Presidents’ Day’ has been widely adopted across the country to celebrate all the US presidents.

As with many other federal holidays, important services take a well-earned break.

Here’s what you need to know about what is open and what is closed on 19 February:

Stores

Major stores such as Costco, Walmart and Target will all be open for Presidents’ Day.

Most retailers will also be offering huge discounts and deals on the holiday, with sales on huge brands.

Banks

The Federal Reserve Bank will be closed, but TD Bank will be open on Presidents’ Day.

Wells Fargo, Citibank, Bank of America and Truist will have branches closed as well, the companies confirmed to USA Today.

Postal Services

Similar to other federal holidays, the USPS will be closed on 19 February. UPS store locations will be open on Presidents’ Day, and pickup and delivery services are available.

However, they added that UPS SurePost and UPS Mail Innovations deliveries will require one additional business day’s time in transit due to the federal holiday.

Most of FedEx’s services said they would be operating as normal, but FexEx Express and FedEx Ground Economy have modified services.

What else is closed?

As it is a federal holiday, government offices and courts will likely close. Most public libraries will also shut down for the day.

Some schools will be closed for the day; however, this may vary depending on what district or state you live in.

Many states also said that the DMV will close for the holiday.

Stock exchanges are closed, too, such as Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange.