Happy Cinco de Mayo
Today is Cinco de Mayo, the fifth of May, celebrating the defeat of the French Army at the Battle of Puebla in Mexico in 1862. That wasn’t the end of the war with the French — they weren’t out of Mexico until 1867 — but it was a good start.
It’s “seen as a day to celebrate the culture, achievements and experiences of people with a Mexican background, who live in the United States”1 — and it is not an official holiday, anywhere.
Yesterday, on the other hand, the fourth of May, was Rhode Island Independence Day. It marks the passage of an act by the Rhode Island colonial legislature declaring Rhode Island an independent state on May 4, 1776.2
And it is an official state holiday in Rhode Island, so state and municipal offices may be closed.3
Which means, of course, that today would be just dandy as a day to set out to do research, except maybe you’d want to watch out for parades and street events in areas celebrating Cinco de Mayo. And yesterday would have been a lousy day to set out to do research in Rhode Island, but perfectly fine everywhere else.
So… what other gotchas are waiting out there, ready to catch us unaware when we set out to research?
The Legal Genealogist has already written about federal holidays and how — and when — they came to be, in “The law of holidays.”4 So we won’t revisit those. But state holidays… oh my there are a lot of those…
Here’s the list, according to
Alabama:
• Robert E. Lee’s Birthday, state holiday celebrated January 19 or on the Monday of the federal Martin Luther King Day holiday.
• Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras, last day before Lent (some counties only).
• Confederate Memorial Day, fourth Monday in April.
• Jefferson Davis Birthday, first Monday in June.
Alaska:
• Seward’s Day, last Monday in March.
• Alaksa Day, October 18 (or closest business day to that date).
Arizona:
• Civil Rights Day, third Monday in January, in conjunctionm with Martin Luther King Day.
Arkansas:
• Robert E. Lee’s Birthday, state holiday celebrated January 19 or on the Monday of the federal Martin Luther King Day holiday.
• Daisy Gatson Bates Day, third Monday in February, with Washington’s Birthday.
California:
• Lincoln’s Birthday, February 12.
• César Chávez Day, March 31.
Connecticut:
• Lincoln’s Birthday, February 12.
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
Delaware:
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
District of Columbia:
• Emancipation Day, April 16.
Florida:
• Robert E. Lee’s Birthday, state holiday (but not paid holiday for state workers) celebrated January 19 or on the Monday of the federal Martin Luther King Day holiday.
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
• Confederate Memorial Day, fourth Monday in April.
Georgia:
• Robert E. Lee’s Birthday, state holiday celebrated January 19 or on the Monday of the federal Martin Luther King Day holiday.
• Confederate Memorial Day, fourth Monday in April.
Hawaii:
• Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole Day, or Prince Kuhio Day, March 26.
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
• Kamehameha Day, June 11.
• Statehood Day, third Friday in August.
Idaho:
• Human Rights Day, January 19, in conjunctionm with Martin Luther King Day.
Illinois:
• Lincoln’s Birthday, February 12.
• Casimir Pulaski Day, first Monday in March.
Indiana:
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
• Lincoln’s Day, Friday after Thanksgiving.
• Primary Election Day, first Tuesday after first Monday in May in odd-numbered years.
Kentucky:
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
Louisiana:
• Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras, last day before Lent.
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
Maine:
• Patriot’s Day, third Monday in April.
Maryland:
• American Indian Heritage Day, Friday after Thanksgiving.
Massachusetts:
• Evacuation Day, March 17.
• Patriot’s Day, third Monday in April.
• Bunker Hill Day, only in Suffolk County, June 17.
Mississippi:
• Robert E. Lee’s Birthday, state holiday celebrated January 19 or on the Monday of the federal Martin Luther King Day holiday.
Missouri:
• Lincoln’s Birthday, February 12.
• Truman Day, on or about May 8.
Nebraska:
• Arbor Day, last Friday in April.
Nevada:
• Nevada Day, last Friday of October.
New Hampshire:
• Civil Rights Day, third Monday in January, in conjunctionm with Martin Luther King Day.
New Jersey:
• Lincoln’s Birthday, February 12.
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
New Mexico:
• President’s Day, Friday after Thanksgiving.
New York:
• Lincoln’s Birthday, February 12.
North Carolina:
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
• Confederate Memorial Day, May 10 (May 11 if May 10 is a Sunday).
North Dakota:
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
Pennsylvania:
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
Rhode Island:
• Rhode Island Independence Day, May 4.
• Victory Day, second Monday of August.
South Carolina:
• Confederate Memorial Day, May 10.
Tennessee:
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
Texas:
• Confederate Heroes Day, January 19.
• Texas Independence Day, March 2.
• Good Friday, last Friday before Easter.
• San Jacinto Day, April 21.
• Emancipation Day, June 19.
Utah:
• Pioneer Day, July 24.
Vermont:
• Town Meeting Day, first Tuesday of March.
• Bennington Battle Day, August 16 (or preceding Friday if a Saturday).
Virginia:
• Lee-Jackson Day, state holiday celebrated on the Friday before the federal Martin Luther King Day holiday, honoring both Robert E. Lee and Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson.
West Virginia:
• Lincoln’s Day, Friday after Thanksgiving.
• West Virginia Day, June 20 (June 21, if June 20 is a Sunday).
So…. what did we miss?
SOURCES
- “Cinco de Mayo in the United States,” Time and Date (http://www.timeanddate.com : accessed 4 May 2015). ↩
- Phoebe Bean, “Happy R.I. Independence Day!,” A Lively Experiment blog, posted 4 May 2015, Rhode Island Historical Society (https://rihs.wordpress.com/ : accessed 4 May 2015). ↩
- “Rhode Island Independence Day in the United States,” Time and Date (http://www.timeanddate.com : accessed 4 May 2015). ↩
- Judy G. Russell, “The law of holidays,” The Legal Genealogist, posted 18 Feb 2013 (https://www.legalgenealogist.com/blog : accessed 4 May 2015). ↩
Ole and Lena want to be sure that everyone knows that Thursday is Norwegian Constitution Day.
Last I checked, Norway wasn’t an American state, but hey… we should all broaden our horizons, shouldn’t we? 🙂
Some people have no sense of humor. — Ole and Lena. [Note: Edited to remove the “no follow” links, so folks can actually follow and see the humor!]
When the links posted are “no follow”, that means they won’t link back. So you’re right: I missed the humor — couldn’t follow the links until I edited the “no follow” parts out.
Evacuation Day in Massachusetts is a farce. It was created by Irish American politicians so that they could have a holiday on March 17th – St. Patrick’s Day! All the drinking and partying far outweighs the small ceremony held by Veterans for Evacuation remembrances. How do we know it is a farce? The Boston politicians signed the documents for the holiday with GREEN INK!
Love it, love it, love it.
Judy,
Oh my, does this ring a bell for me. How about traveling across the world to a place you’ve dreamed of going and finding out the Historical Society you’re a member of is closed because of a holiday? This happened to me just last year when my husband and I went to Aberdeen, Scotland (where many of my ancestors are from). So, please pay attention to those holidays in all the countries you go to. I wrote about my misadventure on my blog. Here’s the link, if anyone wants to read about my big mistake http://www.michiganfamilytrails.com/2014/05/my-trip-to-scotlandwhat-i-did-right-and.html
Thanks for writing about this. It’s a lesson we all need to remember.
Diane
Oh, ouch, Diane… that hurts!
Wow, Casimir Pulaski Day in Illinois is a surprise to me. Didn’t expect such a holiday in that location. I suppose the number of Polish immigrants to Illinois helps explain the observance. “Count” Pulaski was a Cavalry officer in Poland and came to the US during the Revolution to aid the Patriot side. He died from wounds he received during the Siege of Savannah.
My family isn’t Polish. Instead, they were living in the Carolinas and Georgia from the 1780s to after the Civil War. Still, we have a lot of boys who bear the names Casimir Pulaski _____, Pulaski ______, or Count Pulaski ______. Some had trouble spelling Casimir and/or Pulaski, so went only by the initials C.P. All are relatives or descendants of a young [14-year-old] soldier boy who was serving in the South Carolina Line at the Siege of Savannah and saw Pulaski wounded.
That’s a neat link between your family and the count!
In Ohio December 1 is Rosa Parks Day. Ohio Statehood Day is March 1.
Those aren’t close-the-courthouse holidays, are they, Pat? I don’t see them on the state’s official holiday list.
Here in Washington the day after Thanksgiving is listed on the state holiday calendar. I’ve also run into that at a county courthouse in Illinois, even though it wasn’t an official state holiday.
That’s pretty much standard everywhere these days, Dave, but I should have included it. Thanks.
You might add that Admission Day, the anniversary of the day California was admitted to the Union, is observed on September 9 and is an Official State Holiday — certainly all state offices are closed.
Thank you!
In Missouri, Harry S. Truman’s Birthday, May 8 is a holiday for state offices, which will be closed on that day or the Friday or Monday closest to it.
Thanks for the additional info about Truman Day, which is on the list.
I will be bummed until Star Wars Day is recognized as an official holiday. 🙂 May the Fourth be with you. 🙂
I’ll vote for that! 🙂
This was very timely, Judy. Tonight I turned on Jeopardy! and they had a category for state holidays 🙂
Wow! I hope you got all the questions right!
Arizona celebrates statehood day on February 14th
Neat — not an official state holiday though (see http://www.hr.az.gov/additionalpages/ad_state_holidays.asp).
Sure was good to see you in FHL last week,
however, Pioneer Day is not always held on 24 of July. When it falls on Sunday, bump to 25th, no matter what.
And the FHL CLOSES. I’ve seen some caught off guard. And even it is federal holiday but the FHL close LONGER than one day, always closed on 24t of Dec, sometimes 23rd or even 22nd if necessary depending on what day 25th falls on. FHL also closes the day after Thanksgiving.
Even it is not state holiday, the FHL also closes the Saturday before 1st Sunday in April and October for LDS General Conferences.
And we can handle almost anything except the FHL closing!!! We don’t even like it closing at 5 p.m., much less closing for an entire day! 🙂
Cinco de Mayo is not a government holiday in Mexico, but it is a national holiday and has been since it was declared so by Benito Juarez in 1862. It is not as big a deal in Mexico as Dieciseis de Septiembre (Mexican Independence Day), but schools are closed and it is still observed especially near the Northern border and in Puebla. So it is not accurate to say that it is “not an official holiday, anywhere [sic].”
You’re right that I’m letting my American roots show: I should have said it’s not an official holiday anywhere in the United States.
Oregon has a very Boring and Dull state holiday every August 9th. We don’t get to close the offices, but we do have a lot of fun! 🙂
http://www.oregonlive.com/clackamascounty/index.ssf/2014/08/boring_dull_day_celebration_se.html
I love it! That’s hilarious!
There use to be a Colorado Day.
http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/us/colorado-day
My first trip out of the United States was in 2011. My wife and daughter allowed me a few moments to do some genealogy on my wife’s family. I had one day in Dublin and the Library was closed due to a Bank holiday. Ouch.
Oh ouch indeed on the Dublin deal. And Colorado Day isn’t a public holiday, even if we ought to celebrate it, we Colorado natives!