February 16

 Holidays and Observances
(Alphabetical Order)

2026 Daily Holidays that fall on February 16, include:

• Daisy Gatson Bates Day - February 16, 2026 (State Holiday in Arkansas)
• Do a Grouch a Favor Day 
• Elizabeth Peratrovich Day - (Local Observance in Alaska)
• Family Day (Canada) - February 16, 2026 (Third Monday in February)
• Innovation Day
• Islander Day (Canada) - February 16, 2026 (Third Monday in February)
• Kyoto Protocol Day 
• National Almond Day
• President's Day - February 16, 2026 (Third Monday in February)
• Tim Tam Day
• Washington's Birthday - February 16, 2026 (Third Monday in February). Some State and Local Governments refer to this day as President's Day. His Actual Birthday is on February 22

2026 Weekly Holidays that include February 16, are:

• Info. to Come!

2026 Monthly Holidays that include February 16, are:

There are too many monthly holidays to include here, so please check out our February Holidays page to see all of the holidays that are celebrated the entire month of February.

NOTE:

1. A page on each holiday will be coming soon and linked above.
2. If a date is a movable holiday, that is different every year, I'll include the year as well as the date rule above. Otherwise, the holiday falls on the same date each year.

World Festivals and Events
(Date Order)

• Info. to Come!

Astrological Sign

The Astrological Sign for February 16 is an Aquarius.

Birth Flower of the Month

The Birth Flower(s) for the Month for February are:

• Violet - symbolizes faithfulness, loyalty, humility, wisdom, and hope
  
• Primrose - Modesty, distinction, and virtue
  
  

Birthstone

The Birthstone for February is Amethyst.

Famous Birthdays

• 1812 – Henry Wilson, American politician, 18th Vice President of the United States (d. 1875)
• 1903 – Edgar Bergen, American ventriloquist (d. 1978)
• 1909 – Richard McDonald, American fast food entrepreneur, who established the first McDonald's restaurant along with his brother in San Bernardino, California (d. 1998)
• 1918 – Patty Andrews, American singer, member of Andrews Sisters (d. 2013)
• 1935 - Sonny Bono, American entertainer (Sonny & Cher), politician (d. 1998)
• 1936 – Jill Kinmont, American skier (d.2012)
• 1952 - James Ingram  American singer, pianist and composer
• 1957 – LeVar Burton, American actor (Roots, Star Trek - The Next Generation, Reading Rainbow)
• 1959 – John McEnroe, American tennis player

Famous Deaths

• 2012 – Gary Carter, American Hall of Fam baseball catcher (b. 1954)

Famous Weddings and Divorces

• 1982 - Lee Majors & Farrah Fawcett Majors divorce
• 1989 - Jane Fonda & Tom Hayden separate after 16 years of marriage

Quote of the Day

As far as I can tell, reading will never go out of style, and neither will good old fashioned storytelling. ~LeVar Burton

LeVar Burton was born on this day in 1957.  He was an American actor who starred in Roots and the Star Trek - The Next Generation movie. He went on to host the  Reading Rainbow, a children's television show that ran from 1983 to 2006. Reading Rainbow  won a Peabody Award and twenty-six Emmy Awards, ten of which were in the "Outstanding Children's Series" category.

Healthy Diet Habit Tip of the Day 
or a Recipe of the Day

The Holidays and Observances Recipe of the Day for February 16, is a Pork Stir Fry Recipe from Kerry, at Healthy Diet Habits.  February 16, is National Almond Day, so you can serve this meal with some slivered almonds on top!

Season

February 16th falls within the Winter Season in the Northern Hemisphere.

Winter is one of the four seasons. It follows the Fall Season, and is before the Spring Season. It is the coldest and darkest season in the Northern Hemisphere. It also starts in one year, and ends in the next, so it straddles two different years. 

Check out our Winter Season page for information about Winter, Winter Dates, Major Winter Holidays and Observances, Major Winter Festivals, Fun Facts About Winter, Winter Food Tips, Winter Gardening, Winter Preparation, Winter Quotes, and Winter Weather Information.

Kerry has put together some great information and tips on winter foods: 

• Winter Foods
• Winter Weight Gain
• Winter Weight Loss Tips

If you live in the Southern Hemisphere, this day falls in the Summer Season. 

• Summer
• Summer Cooking 
• Summer Weight Loss Tips 

This Day in History

• 1741 - Benjamin Franklin's General Magazine, begins publishing. It is the 2nd US Magazine
  
• 1878 – Silver Dollar becomes legal US tender
• 1883 - Ladies Home Journal begins publishing
• 1909 - The 1st subway car with side doors goes into service in New York City
• 1914 - 1st airplane flight (LA to SF)
• 1923 – Howard Carter unseals the burial chamber of Pharaoh Tutankhamun. (King Tut)
• 1937 – Wallace H. Carothers receives a United States patent for nylon.
• 1946 - The 1st commercially designed helicopter is tested in Bridgeport Connecticut
• 1959 – Fidel Castro becomes Premier of Cuba after dictator Fulgencio Batista was overthrown on January 1.
• 1962 – Flooding in the coastal areas of West Germany kills 315 and destroys the homes of about 60,000 people.
• 1978 – The first computer bulletin board system is created (CBBS in Chicago, Illinois).
• 2006 – The last Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) is decommissioned by the United States Army.

This Day in Music

• 1963 - The Beatles' Please Please Me hit #1 in the UK
• 1968 - Elvis Presley receives gold record for How Great Thou Art
• 1974 - Bob Dylan's album Planet Waves hits #1
• 1974 - Elton John, Bennie And The Jets is released (video below)
  
• 1997 - Michael Jackson sings Elizabeth I Love You, which he wrote for the actress Elizabeth Taylor, at her 65th birthday celebration
• 2011 - Lady GaGa's Born This Way, becomes the Billboard Hot 100 chart's, 1000th number one.

This Day in Sports

• 1936 - 4th Winter Olympic games close at Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany
• 1970 - Joe Frazier TKOs Jimmy Ellis in 5 for heavyweight boxing title
• 1972 - 1st NBA to score 30,000 points (Wilt Chamberlain in 940 games during a game with Phoenix Suns)
• 1984 - Bill Johnson becomes 1st American to win Olympic downhill skiing gold
• 2005 – The National Hockey League cancels the entire 2004-2005 regular season and playoffs.
• 1991 - US female Figure Skating championship won by Tonya Harding

Word of the Day from Wiktionary

Wishing You a Great Day Today!