Washington's Birthday: Its History, Observance, Spirit, and Significance as Related in Prose and Verse, with a Selection from Washington's Speeches and Writings

This early 20th-century collection captures a pivotal moment in American memory, when the nation was grappling with how to honor its first president. Schauffler assembles historical essays, poetry, and Washington's own words to trace the holiday's evolution from raucous commemoration to formalized observance. What emerges is a nuanced portrait of a people revising their relationship with national heroes, moving from veneration toward something more human. The book reveals how Washington's birthday became a lens for examining American identity itself, and how the original spirit of those celebrations-with their warmth and spontaneity-gave way to the formalities we now associate with Presidents' Day. For anyone curious about how holidays are made and unmade, and what we choose to remember about the men who shape nations, this volume offers a rich, occasionally surprising window into early 20th-century American thought.