In Rhode Island, we still have VJ (Victory over Japan) day which people don't celebrate per se but it's recognized to the extent of delaying trash pickup by a day.
By "legitimate" holiday I mean more in the vein of Memorial Day rather than National Hot Dog Day
Edit: Apparently VJ Day is also recognized by the US Space & Rocket Center and formerly by the state of Arkansas and is more commonly called Victory Day
30 comments
A few years ago I may have said Juneteenth but now it’s become national
Utah has Pioneer Day
Massachusetts has Patriot’s Day
24th of July is Pioneer Day. Trying to remember our pioneer roots, but more importantly, an excuse to have a day off and a BBQ in the backyard.
April 15th is Patriot’s Day in Massachusetts. They even get an extra day to file their federal taxes.
Cesar Chavez day. My kids will have off school for it.
Boston famously has Evacuation Day, which is the day the British military left the city. It was chosen out of a history book to be a city holiday because it happened to fall on St. Patrick’s Day and the government wanted to give the city the day off.
[Return Day](https://ljidelaware.org/history-of-return-day/) is a holiday unique to Delaware. On the Thursday following an election, candidates from both parties get together and “bury the hatchet “.
Illinois has Casimir Pulaski Day
I would say Mardi gras, but outside south Louisiana the rest of the state doesn’t shut down.
I know mobile does Mardi gras but not sure it’s a holiday there
I was in my late teens before I realized that Sweetest Day isn’t a thing everywhere. It’s not exclusive to Ohio, but it started in Cleveland, Ohio and has really only spread to a few other states/regions, mostly in the Midwest and Rust Belt. It’s definitely a Hallmark Holiday – kind of a smaller-scale Valentine’s Day, but it is a thing that people actually celebrate, in a similar way to Valentine’s Day, though on a smaller scale – dinner out, small gifts like chocolate, flowers, etc.
Chicago and other places have Pulaski Day. I had never heard of it until I lived briefly in Illinois.
yup, illinois has Casimir Pulaski day, we got the day off from school. though its still recognized, i think many schools are now in session
back when i was still in school, they would schedule any out of state feild trips that weekend, so we could visit on a weekday with few others there
There are parts of PA that take Groundhog Day a bit more seriously than the rest of the country (and the rest of the state).
Oaks Day for parts of Kentucky. It’s the race on the Friday before the Kentucky Derby.
Michigan: November 15th Opening day of hunting season. Schools close, stores don’t open until noon and close by 4pm. Up Nort’ the bars stock up on leinenkugel, the pasties are plentiful and there isn”t a single deck of cards with a 2,3, or 4 in it.
Virginia used to have Lee and Jackson Day.
Nevada has Nevada Day – schools and government offices close to commemorate the founding of the state.
Hawaii has King Kamehameha day and Statehood Day, both of which are official state holidays.
Missouri has a Harry S Truman Day.
West Virginians celebrate the day West Virginia became a state during the civil war. Usually like pepperoni rolls for dinner and mothman memes on West Virginia day. It is legally a state holiday-there are some festivals and some people will get off, schools might do something, etc.
Hawaii has these state holidays that are not federal holidays – Kuhio Day, Good Friday, and Kamehameha Day
Hawaii celebrates the day Captain Cook was killed
Colorado replaced Columbus Day with Cabrini Day to honor a woman that was pretty big in our history named
Frances Xavier Cabrini. She was the first American to be recognized as a Saint by the Vatican in part due to her works here in Colorado.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Xavier_Cabrini
Massachusetts: Patriots Day, Bunker Hill Day and, if you live in Boston, Evacuation Day.
DC has Emancipation Day which is the day enslaved people in DC were freed. I get this day off since my work follows DC holidays.
It also delays Tax Day nationwide some years for reasons I can’t remember.
Dyngus Day is a reasonably big deal in South Bend, Indiana (and a few other cities with historically large Polish American communities).
In Pennsylvania we used to be off school for the first day of deer hunting season
This may be super niche but I’m from NJ and mischief night is the night before Halloween. Outside of the NJ area and surrounding states no one else really knows what it is. People in the area just know it’s the day toilet paper will be on trees, houses will be egged, etc. It’s the day of mischief. Police are on the streets more to try and catch people before they graffiti the roads.
Also super niche but as a Catholic from NJ, I assumed everyone in the US had dispensation from meat if St. Patrick’s day fell on a Friday in Lent. When I moved to NC I was shocked it wasn’t automatic. Turns out the Irish population in NJ is just so high is is basically guaranteed there. Not sure if that fits the question but it feels like it could.
Confederate Memorial Day Alabama. Yes it’s bullshit.