The United States celebrated Presidents’ Day recently — a day set aside to honor the 43 men who have served as the nation’s highest-ranking elected official. The holiday arose from independent celebrations of George Washington’s - the country’s first president - birthday and Abraham Lincoln’s - the 16th president - birthday.

The nation will honor the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth in 2009, and Kentucky will be a focal point for that celebration. Lincoln was born in Kentucky on 12 February 1809, in the community of Hodgenville in what is now LaRue County. Although the family moved to Indiana eight years later and eventually into Illinois, Lincoln’s ties to Kentucky were never severed. He married Mary Todd of Lexington. Her ancestral home is among the many historic buildings preserved to inform and entertain visitors today. The house itself is on Main Street in the shadow of the Lexington Center Complex, which includes a Hyatt Regency Hotel, Rupp Arena, the Civic Center Shops and the Lexington Convention Center (www.lexingtoncenter.com).

As president, Lincoln presided over a nation at war with itself when Southern secessionists opened fire on Fort Sumter, South Carolina, in April 1861. The Confederate States of America (CSA) represented a group of southern states that separated from the Union over two divisive issues — slavery and states’ rights. Ironically, the CSA’s president was another Kentucky native — Jefferson Davis, who had risen to political prominence in his adopted home state of Mississippi.

Kentucky also played an important role in the outcome of the Civil War. Early in the War Between the States, as it was also called, Lincoln said, “I hope to have God on my side, but I must have Kentucky.” In October 1862, just a few miles south of Lexington, the Battle of Perryville pitted 18,000 Confederate troops against 20,000 Union soldiers in what many consider to be the turning point of the war. Although the Confederates won the battle, it was not decisive and proved to be quite costly in terms of soldiers killed and injured. It marked the last time Southern troops were able to advance that far into Kentucky.

Today, Perryville is one of the most pristine battlefields in the nation. Every year, hundred of reenactors and thousands of visitors descend on the tiny town to watch a recreation of the Battle of Perryville. Visitors to the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games 2010 will actually have an opportunity to relive the pivotal Civil War battle. The reenactment takes place annually in early October and is scheduled for 9-10 October 2010.

The presence of the battlefield, coupled with historic Merchants’ Row — the town’s antebellum commercial district - make Perryville the ideal place to study 19th-century military and civilian life (www.perryville.net).