Follow street signs on Presidents Day, discover local lore, landmarks and more

Above / In Naperville, Illinois, the street named for President George Washington runs north to south. The city’s most important thoroughfare crosses under the BNSF railway tracks near Fifth Avenue and over bridges of the West Branch of the DuPage River. In addition to vehicular traffic, many small businesses, schools, churches, private homes and Edward Hospital dot the landscape along busy Washington Street. In the heart of downtown Naperville, Jefferson Avenue crosses Washington, east to west.

Inspired to update what we’ve posted in the past about Presidents Day, Sunday’s mid-afternoon sunshine provided time to reflect on signs of former Presidents that mark local streets in downtown Naperville.

Remember 2026 Presidents Day on February 16

In a nutshell, Presidents Day is celebrated annually on the third Monday in February, giving local schools, U.S. Stock Markets and some government agencies a three-day weekend. For 2026, Presidents Day is Mon. Feb. 16, sandwiched between Valentine’s Day and Mardi Gras, a.k.a. Fat Tuesday.

Officially established in 1968 to honor the birthdays of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, the holiday law was signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson and the third-Monday date for Presidents Day was selected since it coincides closest with Washington’s birth date on February 22.

School children prior to 1968 likely recall when the holiday was held on February 22 in many states.

Certainly, most folks have learned and recognize Washington as the first U.S. President. He’s the face on the one dollar bill. Born in Virginia in 1732, Washington served against the French in the Seven Years War. When conflict between the British government and the Americans over taxation came to a head, Washington led as a successful general, leading troops to victory at Yorktown, Pennsylvania, in 1781, essentially ending the war.

In 1787, Washington presided over the Philadelphia Convention of 39 men, aiming to formulate the U.S. Constitution. He served as President, limiting himself to two terms from 1789 to 1797. Washington died in 1799.

Throughout the U.S., the most commonly shared street name with a president’s name is, not surprisingly, Washington.

In Naperville, Jackson Avenue runs west of Washington Street where Beidelman Furniture since 1861 is a landmark.

Considering that Americans will be celebrating the 250th anniversary of the nation all year by highlighting significant individuals or events, consider that 2026 also is time to vote in the Primary on March 17 to elect the ballot for the Midterm General Election on Nov. 3.

So, speaking of contests, elections and local street names, this past Mon., Feb. 9, marked the 201st anniversary of one of two presidential elections that had been decided by the House of Representatives.

In 1825 after no candidate won a majority of the electoral college, the House of Representatives elected John Quincy Adams as president over Andrew Jackson.

Then four years later, Andrew Jackson was elected and he served as the seventh President of the United States from 1829-1837. President Jackson was leading the nation when Joe Naper and his family arrived on the banks of the DuPage.

(Note that in the 1800 election, Thomas Jefferson tied with Aaron Burr. And the House chose Jefferson on the 36th ballot.)

From 15,000 biographies to Lincoln Logs

February 12 was the 217^th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday.

According to literary sources, more books, as many as 15,000, have been written about Lincoln than any other American. And what other U.S. President was named in a popular learning toy for children? Remember Lincoln Logs?

Briefly profiled here, Lincoln was born in Kentucky and lived in Indiana prior to moving to Illinois where he became a lawyer. From 1834 to 1849, he served in and out of politics in Springfield and Washington, D. C., returning to politics in 1854. He was a leader of the Republican Party which was established in 1856 to oppose slavery.

In 1861, he began his first term as the 16^th U.S. President, the same year the Confederate States proposed to withdraw from the Union, and the Civil War broke out. Lincoln is credited for the memorable phrase “Government of the people, by the people and for the people,” an excerpt from his Gettysburg Address in 1863. He was assassinated in 1865.

For many years, the portrayal of **Abe Lincoln** was one of the attractions during Naper Settlement’s reenactment of Civil War Days in May. The village transformation into a 1864 encampment ended its long run in 2019. (PN File Photo)

Laughing Lincoln in Central Park

A portrayal of **Abe Lincoln** added good humor and wise words to the dedication of “Laughing Lincoln” on Dec. 2, 2018, during the bicentennial celebration of Illinois, the 21st state in the U.S.

Since December 2018 when Illinois was celebrating its bicentennial year, a life-size bronze sculpture of Abraham Lincoln as a young man and jovial storyteller has been sitting on a bench in Central Park.

Conceived in 2015 after the death of former Naperville City Council member and Central Park advocate Don Wehrli, and in partnership with Century Walk, the Wehrli family selected artist David Alan Clark to complete a cast-bronze statue of Abraham Lincoln at age 30, a time when he worked as a lawyer and Illinois state legislator.

In his day, local lore says Lincoln could have helped establish the late Wehrli’s beloved Central Park as the DuPage County seat and site of the county’s first courthouse. In 1839, Naperville town founder Joseph Naper, then a state legislator along with Lincoln, was pushing to create DuPage County out of nine townships in Cook County, and 30-year-old Lincoln voted against his party to help make that happen. Three years earlier, Naper had voted against his party to support Lincoln’s initiative to move the state capitol from Vandalia to Springfield, so some say the votes were a negotiated swap.

Laughing Lincoln in Central Park marks the 50th location for Century Walk, a public art collection created under the leadership of Brand Bobosky. Note also that since 2005, The Great Concerto, a Century Walk mural honoring the Naperville Municipal Band by artist Barton Gunderson, has graced the stage door of the Community Concert Center in Central Park.

Four School District 203 junior high schools honor U.S. Presidents

School District 203 has recognized John F. Kennedy, Abraham Lincoln, James Madison and George Washington by naming all four of its junior high schools to honor U.S. Presidents. (Kennedy Jr. High School is located in Lisle.)

Four U.S. Presidents born in February

Four U.S. Presidents were born in February, even though Lincoln and Washington are the two mentioned to honor on Presidents Day. In addition to Washington and Lincoln, Ronald Reagan and William Henry Harrison share this birthday month.

Born in Virginia on Feb. 9, 1773, William Henry Harrison served as an American military officer and politician prior to being elected the ninth President of the U.S., beginning in 1841. At the time, Harrison was the oldest of any president to win election. On his 32nd day in office, he died of what was believed to be pneumonia. Harrison is distinguished for serving the shortest tenure in U.S. Presidential history.

More than a century later on February 6, 1911, Ronald Reagan was born in northern Illinois. Reagan was renowned as a TV actor and movie star prior to his election as Governor of California in 1967. In 1980, Reagan won a Republican presidency, followed in 1984 with a land side victory, serving two terms as the 40^th Commander in Chief. Reagan died in 2004.

Find local landmarks all along Washington Street

Take a stroll along Washington Street, just before Jackson Ave., and look up at the roof tops. Note parapet walls and design details at 216 S. Washington that display this city’s rich history from the 19th century. Check out the architecture of local landmarks (Naperville Woman’s Club, Beidelman Furniture and Nichols Library) as well as a 21st century clocktower at Fredenhagen Park with a path that leads to North Central College.

Need parking? Keep moving along Washington Street and turn west at Van Buren Avenue. Then head to the entrance to the Van Buren Parking Deck, just steps from the corner in the middle of the block. And did you know? Born in 1782 after the American Revolution, Martin Van Buren is known as the “First American President” since he was the first president not born a British subject. After serving as VP under Andrew Jackson, he served as the 8th President of the U.S. from 1837 to 1841.

Look up and all around for signs of history