Things to Do on Presidents' Day in Chicago

Presidents' Day is one of those holidays that doesn't get all that much attention outside of your average public school. It is, in part, a solution to a dilemma many parents have faced ever since women started to enter the work force in greater numbers. Some school districts would give pupils Washington's birthday off, while others gave their pupils Lincoln's birthday off. Meanwhile, as a gesture of goodwill, many employers would give employees one or the other of these two days off. The problem came when Mom had one of those days off, while Junior had the other, which presented numerous day-care problems. The solution was to make these two birthdays into one federal holiday. (This doesn't solve the problem entirely, though, as Illinois state employees have Lincoln's birthday as one of their days off. This state does bill itself as the Land of Lincoln, after all.)

In my search on the Internet and in other areas, I have found that there isn't all that much out there for Presidents' Day in terms of events. The Chicago History Museum (which used to be called the Chicago Historical Society) is inviting families to come on over, dressed as one's favorite President, if possible. Franklin Delano Roosevelt will be dropping by at 11AM Central Time, and the Lincoln family will be visiting the museum two hours later. Afterward, Mr. Lincoln will be giving a speech. While you're there, see if you can see the suit Washington wore to his inauguration; this was a highlight of my wife's visit when she went on a field trip to this institution in grade school. Also, there is a Chicago tradition of rubbing Lincoln's nose while one is at the museum, if you can get near one of the Lincoln statues. (It's supposed to bring good luck to those who do so.)

I have also included a link to the Chicago Park District's list of Presidents' Day commemorations. It seems to me as if virtually every Chicago neighborhood park is having at least one such commemoration.

Sources:
Chicago Historical Society events
Chicago Park Districtevents
Lincoln's home