Columbus Day 2019: What’s Open And Closed In Howard County

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — Communities across Howard County will recognize the federal holiday Columbus Day on Monday, Oct. 14. Government offices and other services will be closed.

President Benjamin Harrison organized the first Columbus Day celebration in 1892 to mark the 400th anniversary of Columbus landing in the Americas. A little over 40 years later, in 1934, President Franklin Roosevelt made Columbus Day a national holiday.

In recent years, a collection of states and cities have chosen to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples’ Day, including: Minnesota, Vermont, San Francisco and Cincinnati.

A recent poll from College Pulse, a data and survey analytics company, found that 79 percent of 1,500 college students polled favored replacing Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

On average, 88 percent of the students who identified as Democrats supported the name change, and only 22 percent of Republicans polled were in favor of swapping the names.

No matter how you spend the holiday, various closures may impact your daily routine.

Here’s a look at what’s open and closed across Howard County:

• County government offices are closed.
• Courts are closed.
• The county animal shelter is closed.
• Many county centers are closed.
• Robinson Nature Center is closed.
• All trash, recycling and food scrap services will remain active.
• Howard County Schools will be open.
• Alpha Ridge Landfill will be open.
• County parks will be open.
• Gary J. Arthur Community Center will be open.
• North Laurel Community Center will be open.
• Roger Carter Community Center will be open.
• County historic sites will be open.
• Kiwanis-Wallas Hall will be open.
• Meadowbrook Athletic Center will be open.
• RTA will operate on a regular weekday schedule.
• Banks will be closed.