Retired county Judge Martin O'Brien commissioned the painting of "The First Shot," which was unveiled in 2008 at the Heinz History Center in Pittsburgh. The painting is part of the center's permanent French and Indian War exhibit. The piece illustrates a moment in George Washington's journey across Butler County in 1753 when a Native American shot at and missed Washington and his guide, Christopher Gist, as they were returning to Virginia from negotiations with the French. Butler Eagle File Photo

DAVE PRELOSKY

Presidents Day is Monday. For most Americans, the federal holiday has become associated with Presidents Day sales during which retailers mark down kitchen appliances and clothing as a way to clear out their stock of winter merchandise.

For parents, it’s a day to scramble for alternative child care because schools — along with banks, post offices and government agencies — are closed giving bureaucrats, postal carriers and bank tellers a three-day weekend.

But the third Monday of February is set aside to remember the nation’s presidents, especially the first one. The holiday started out being called Washington’s Birthday after President George Washington, whose birth date was Feb. 22, 1732.

According to the History Channel, Presidents Day began in 1800. Following the death of George Washington in 1799, his Feb. 22 birthday became a perennial day of remembrance.

At the time, Washington was revered as the most important figure in American history, and events such as the 1832 centennial of his birth and the start of construction of the Washington Monument in 1848 were cause for national celebration.

It was an unofficial holiday until 1879 when President Rutherford B. Hayes signed a law making it a federal holiday, at first only in the District of Columbia. But in 1885, it was expanded to the whole country.