I would like to try and compile a list of dates that American people
celebrate.

Specifically, I am looking for not just the usual
Xmas/Easter/Halloween type dates, but the smaller events such as
homecoming, thanksgiving, veterans day, independence day, St.Patrics
and all the other smaller dates that an American may celebrate in one
way or another.

I am trying to get a better idea of dates that are more likely to have
less internet usage due to people in the US celebrating occasions and
not going online so much.

Hello--

I have carefully researched your question and have your answer.

New Year's Day, January 1st. 
Birthday of Martin Luther King, third Monday in January. 
Inauguration Day, January 20th every four years (2001, 2005, 2009,
etc.)
Washington's Birthday, third Monday in February. 
Armed Forces Day, third Saturday in May. 
Memorial Day, last Monday in May. 
Flag Day, June 14th. 
United States of America's Independence Day, July 4. 
Labor Day, first Monday in September. 
Columbus Day, second Monday in October. 
Election Day, Tuesday on or after November 2. 
Veterans Day, November 11th. 
Thanksgiving Day, fourth Thursday in November. 
Christmas Day, December 25th.
Groundhog Day, February 2. 
Lincoln's Birthday, February 12. 
Valentine's Day, February 14. 
Washington's Birthday, February 22. 
St. Patrick's Day, March 17. 
April Fools's Day, April 1. 
Earth Day, April 22. 
Administrative Assistants' Day, which once upon a time was
Secretaries' Day, is the Wednesday of the last full week of April
(that is, the Wednesday before the last Saturday in April).
Arbor Day is often the last Friday in April, but since planting
conditions vary, it may occur from September to May; please consult
the National Arbor Day Foundation's list of Arbor Day Dates.
Mothers' Day, second Sunday in May. 
Fathers' Day, third Sunday in June. 
Parents' Day, fourth Sunday in July. 
Grandparents' Day, Sunday after Labor Day. 
Columbus Day, October 12. 
United Nations Day, October 24. 
Halloween, October 31. 


One good site I found regarding your information is called "The
American Secular Holidays Calendar." The link is
http://www.smart.net/~mmontes/ushols.html

You may read how these holidays were started at a site called "Holiday
Origins." The link is http://www.holidayorigins.com/home.html

More information about American holidays can be found at About USA.
The link is http://www.usinfo.pl/aboutusa/holidays/

To conduct this research, I searched the following search terms:
"american holidays"

I hope this helps! If you need any clarification, please don't
hesitate to ask.

darrel-ga

Lots of great info there, thanks!

Presidents' Day (celebrates both Lincoln and Washington),
    third Monday in February.

New Year's Eve, December 31.

The Gregorian dates for the following Jewish and Christian holidays
vary:

1) Rosh Hashana, celebrates the day on which G-d created Man (Adam),
falls from sunset on the 1st day of Tishrei up to the sunset of the
following day.

2) Yom Kippur, "falls on the tenth day of Tishrei, in the Jewish
calendar [Tishrei has 30 days in September-October], and brings to an
end the 'Ten days of Repentance' which began on Rosh Hashana... a fast
day which lasts for approximately twenty-five hours, from sunset,
until the stars come out on the following night."
http://www.wujs.org.il/activist/yom_kippur/index.shtml

3) Chanukah (Hanukah), 8 days from sunset on the 25th day of Kislev,
up to sunset on the 3rd day of Tevet (November-December).

4) Easter Sunday, "computed according to the rules established as part
of the Gregorian calendar reform in 1582. The Gregorian calendar is
the one now used worldwide for civil purposes.
5) Ash Wednesday is 46 days before Easter Sunday."
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/easter.html

"The actual conditions that determine the date for Easter are:
- Easter falls on the first Sunday following the paschal full moon;
- the paschal full moon is the first ecclesiastical full moon
  that occurs on or after the day of the vernal equinox; and 
- the vernal equinox is fixed as March 21."
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/easter.html

6) Passover (a.k.a. Maundy Thursday), 3 days before Easter.

7) Good Friday, 2 days before Easter.

8) Mardi Gras (a.k.a. Fat Tuesday), February or March, 41 days before
Good Friday (43 days before Easter), is "a boisterous celebration held
annually on Shrove Tuesday, the day before the season of Lent begins
in the Western Christian liturgical calendar. The actual date varies
from year to year since it depends on the date of Easter."
http://www3.kumc.edu/diversity/other/mardigra.html

(Confused yet???)

Regards,

aceresearcher

Oops, forgot:

"Kwanzaa... meaning “first fruits” in Swahili, is a non-religious
holiday that celebrates the African festival of the harvest of the
first crops. Maulana Karenga, a professor of Pan-American studies and
a cultural leader, developed the holiday of Kwanzaa in the United
States in 1966... begins on December 26th and lasts for seven days."
http://www.smarterkids.com/rescenter/library/articles.asp?article=1782&redir=true

Just to clarify --

The federal government holidays -- what the British would call "bank
holidays" -- are New Year's Day, MLK Day, President's Day, Memorial
Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day,
Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Private-sector workers have days off most of those holidays but may
work MLK Day, Columbus Day and Veterans Day. Columbus Day, especially,
is not a day off for many people outside of the federal government.

Since Thanksgiving is on a Thursday, a lot of people have the
following day off as well.

There are also some state holidays that are not federal holidays, such
as Patriots Day in Massachusetts.

As far as I know, no state has an official holiday called
"Homecoming." The term usually refers to an event in which alumni of a
high school or college return to the school. It usually centers around
a football game.

St. Patrick's Day is not an official holiday, although some people
might call off sick the following day with a hangover.

One unofficial holiday worth mentioning is Super Bowl Sunday, the day
of the championship of the National Football League. It usually takes
place the last Sunday in January or the first Sunday in February. I
understand it is the second- or third-biggest gathering day of the
year.

Don't forget Patriot's Day! It is a big holiday in Boston and almost
everybody gets the day off. It is on the third Monday in April, same
day as the running of the Boston Marathon.