# Schools closed on Columbus Day **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 13, 2015, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513 "2015-10-13T03:09:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/21 "2015-10-13T14:58:13Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > Hell, in Chicago, public schools used to (still?) have Pulaski (Crawford?) Day off! 😉 Chicago schools still get Casimir Pulaski Day off. Suburban schools used to when I was a kid but they’ve since mainly dropped it. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/22 "2015-10-13T15:03:33Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > In Minnesota, all the Italian-americans meet at the State Capitol. by the statue of Chirstopher Columbus out front on the mall. Then the Scandinavian-americans meet on the other side of the mall, at the Leif Ericsson statue. They listen to competing speeches, sing songs, drink beverages, and eventually meet in the middle for a brawl. So it’s kind of like the Jets and the Herrings? ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/23 "2015-10-13T15:16:41Z")
Back when I was at a private law firm, Columbus Day was one of the occasions when most DC workers – but not us – were off work. My office had a slight view of Pennsylvania Avenue, and there was usually some festival like Taste of DC being held out there on Columbus Day. I have memories of slogging away at my desk while a three-story inflatable beer can bobbed up and down outside, along with some band performing “Push Push in the Bush.” ---
**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/24 "2015-10-13T16:17:07Z")
Dekalb County GA, the county I live in, had schools closed. City of Decatur, the actual city I live in, had schools open. The university I work for held classes as normal. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/25 "2015-10-13T16:19:40Z")
Florida doesn’t recognize Columbus Day, so everything but the banks was open for business. ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/26 "2015-10-13T16:28:37Z")
It’s Native American Day here and we had it off. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Bredin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@John\_Bredin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Bredin)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/27 "2015-10-13T18:31:58Z")
I was off yesterday (State of Illinois civil service) but the library (at least in Des Plaines) was open – I wanted to use wi-fi but nursing a coffee at Starbucks didn’t appeal to me. 🙂 Judging from the number of trains I saw, Metra (commuter trains) was on a full weekday schedule, so whoever plans things was expecting most downtown workers to be working; courts and banks were closed, but the stock markets were open. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2015, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/28 "2015-10-13T23:53:15Z")
> [@John\_Bredin](#): > > Judging from the number of trains I saw, Metra (commuter trains) was on a full weekday schedule, so whoever plans things was expecting most downtown workers to be working Well, the city had its parade yesterday as well which ties up traffic so the difference between eliminating city/state workers and parade commuters might be a wash. I always find it surprising how light suburban traffic is on Columbus Day. I’d expect most people are working that day but it feels like half the cars are off the road. ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/29 "2015-10-14T01:40:41Z")
Columbus Day here. I called the local community college on Friday, asking if they’d be open on Monday, and the person there _didn’t know.__facepalm_ ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/30 "2015-10-14T02:41:48Z")
> [@John\_Bredin](#): > > I was off yesterday (State of Illinois civil service) but the library (at least in Des Plaines) was open – I wanted to use wi-fi but nursing a coffee at Starbucks didn’t appeal to me. 🙂 > > Judging from the number of trains I saw, Metra (commuter trains) was on a full weekday schedule, so whoever plans things was expecting most downtown workers to be working; courts and banks were closed, but the stock markets were open. Loop worker here. The private sector is mostly open for business. I haven’t had Columbus Day off since I worked for a bank. ---
**Author:** ![Wednesday\_Evening](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b2d939/32.png) [@Wednesday\_Evening](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wednesday_Evening)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/31 "2015-10-14T12:45:49Z")
My kids’ school district back in CA never had Columbus Day off. We just moved to Connecticut and the kids’ school was closed for Columbus day. A quick googling showed that it is a CT state holiday, although many schools were still open. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/32 "2015-10-14T14:42:28Z")
No one here was off–I didn’t check the bank or library. Not a fan of the renames. I’m fine with renaming it, but I find making it an indigenous people day to miss the point. ---
**Author:** ![RadicalPi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/radicalpi/32/9806_2.png) [@RadicalPi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RadicalPi)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513/33 "2015-10-14T21:59:17Z")
Columbus Day is not a state holiday in California, having been switched out (more or less) for Chavez Day. That probably explains why it’s so rare for students to get the day off there. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/schools-closed-on-columbus-day/734513.md?page=1)