Holiday Quiz: Ten Quiz Questions About United States Holidays

1. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was celebrated as a federal holiday one year after his death.

True
False

2. There is no holiday in the United States legally named "President's Day."

True
False

3. George Washington was born on February 11, 1731, but his birth date was changed to February 22, 1732.

True
False

4. Memorial Day stems from a day set aside to put flowers on the graves of soldiers.

True
False

5. The 4th of July is a holiday push into law by workers in order to have a midsummer holiday to spend the day with family and friends and to watch fireworks.

True
False

6. Oregon was the first state to pass a law making February 21, Labor Day.

True
False

7. Columbus Day is a celebration of the day Christopher Columbus came ashore on what is now the United States.

True
False

8. The day chosen for Veteran's Day has always been referred to as Veteran's Day.

True
False

9. Thanksgiving Day has been celebrated in December.

True
False

10. The only claim of a first Thanksgiving celebrated in what is now the United States is the 1621 celebration by the Pilgrims.

True
False

Answers:

1. False. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968 but Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was not celebrated as a federal holiday until January 20, 1986.

2. True. President's Day is a day to honor all U.S. Presidents. However, President Nixon mistakenly thought a Presidential Proclamation was the same as an Executive Order when he combined George Washington's and Abraham Lincoln's birthdays to create President's Day. Since a Presidential Proclamation does not have the power of an Executive Order, the holiday is still legally called "Washington's Birthday."

3. True. This is true because when George Washington was born the Julian calendar was in use. The Gregorian calendar (the calendar we use today) wasn't in use in America until 1752. The Gregorian calendar moved the new year from March to January and moved eleven days ahead, in effect, moving George Washington's birth date from February 11, 1731 to February 22, 1732.

4. True. As early as 1868 there has been different days declared as a day to put flowers on soldiers' graves. However, it wasn't until 1971, an act of Congress made the last Monday in May a legal holiday.

5. False. Believe it or not, many young people of today believe this is true. The 4th of July is Independence Day. It is a celebration of the day the United States Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776.

6. True. Even though the first Labor day was celebrated in New York City on September 5, 1882, Oregon was the first state to make Labor Day a state holiday to be celebrated on February 21, 1887. Today, it is celebrated on the first Monday of September.

7. False. This day is a celebration of the day a sailor on one of Christopher Columbus' ships, the Pinta, spotted land on October 12, 1492. The land spotted wasn't even what became part of the United States. It is what is now San Salvador (Guanahani).

8. False. Veteran's Day was originally Armistice Day. It was approved on May 13, 1938 to make November 11, Armistice Day to honor veterans of World War I. It was legally changed to Veteran's Day in 1954 to honor all veterans.

9. True. Continental Congress recommended in 1777, the colonist celebrate Thursday, December 18, as a day of Thanksgiving. All thirteen colonies did. However, the first five U.S. Presidents made proclamations to have the holiday in November but President John Quincy Adams made no proclamation. He claimed it was an infringement of church and state. No other president issued a proclamation to make any day a celebration of thanksgiving until Sarah Hale wrote President Lincoln pleading him to proclaim the last Thursday in November a day of thanksgiving, which he did. But President Andrew Johnson designated the first Thursday in December and Ulysses Grant, the third Thursday in November. All other Presidents followed Lincoln's proclamation until President Franklin Roosevelt. He proclaimed the next to last Thursday in November of 1939 the holiday. This only affected the District of Columbia and federal workers. Nearly half the state governors did the same but the others did not. Texas and Colorado had two Thanksgiving days. This created mass confusion, so in 1941 President Roosevelt signed legislation establishing the fourth Thursday in November Thanksgiving Day, but this did not take effect until 1942. In 1942 President Roosevelt planned to change the day again, but Congress passed legislation to ensure the day would never again be changed by a President.

10. False. There are several claims to a first Thanksgiving celebrated in what is now the United States. At the Palo Duro Canyon in Texas, Francisco Vasquez de Coronado celebrated in 1541 with his 1,500 men; near what is now Jacksonville, Florida, the French Huguenot colonists celebrated in 1564; Jamestown colonists celebrated in the spring of 1610. The Thanksgiving we celebrate today is based on the one celebrated by the Pilgrims in 1621.