The federal holiday honoring Washington was originally started         
by an Act of Congress in 1879 for government offices in D.C.        
and expanded in 1885 to include all federal offices.      

       
As the first federal holiday to honor an American president,
the holiday was celebrated on Washington’s birthday under
the Gregorian calendar, February 22.

On January 1, 1971, the federal holiday was shifted to the
third Monday in February by the Uniform Monday Holiday
Act.

Groundhog Day is a tradition observed regionally in the United
States and Canada on February 2 of every year. It derives from
the Pennsylvania Dutch superstition that if a groundhog emerges
from its burrow on this day and sees its shadow, it will retreat to
its den and winter will go on for six more weeks; if it does not
see its shadow, spring will arrive early.

The observance of Groundhog Day in the United States first
occurred in German communities in Pennsylvania on
February 2, 1840.
.

While the tradition remains popular in the 21st century,
studies have found no consistent association between
a groundhog seeing its shadow and the subsequent
arrival time of spring-like weather.

(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)