Truman Day
Harry S. Truman
Observed by	United States , Missouri
Type	Secular
Significance	the birthday of the only U.S. president to come from Missouri
Date	May 8
Next time	May 8, 2025  ( 2025-05 )
Frequency	annual

Truman Day is a commemorative holiday to celebrate the birth of Harry S. Truman , the 33rd President of the United States . It is celebrated on May 8 in Missouri as a state holiday ^[1] and nationally by the United States Democratic Party . ^[2] Truman is the only U.S. President to come from Missouri, hence the significance to the state. ^{[3] [4]} For Missouri state employees, this is a paid holiday. ^[5]

Origins [ edit ]

This article is part of a series about Harry S. Truman
Early life Electoral history Assassination attempt Legacy Truman Day Scholarship USS  Harry S. Truman Truman Reservoir Little White House Bibliography Senator from Missouri Senate career Truman Committee Senate elections 1934 1940 33rd President of the United States Presidency timeline Executive actions Foreign policy Truman Doctrine international trips Cabinet Judicial appointments Supreme Court candidates First term First inauguration Atomic bombing Marshall Plan Strike wave Mental Health Act Potsdam Conference NATO Timeline '45 '46 '47 '48 Second term Second inauguration Korean War Housing Act Fair Deal Sherman Minton Supreme Court nomination Steel strike Puerto Rican referendum Timeline '49 '50 '51 '52?'53 Presidential and Vice presidential campaigns 1944 campaign convention election 1948 primaries convention campaign election Dewey Defeats Truman 1952 primaries convention Post-presidency Presidential library Death National historic Site
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Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884 – December 26, 1972) was the 33rd President of the United States (1945?1953), an American politician of the Democratic Party . He served as a United States senator from Missouri (1935?1945) and briefly as Vice President (1945) before he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt . He was president during the final months of World War II , making the decision to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki . Truman was elected in his own right in 1948 . He presided over an uncertain domestic scene as America sought its path after the war, and tensions with the Soviet Union increased, marking the start of the Cold War .

Post-presidency, Truman was a popular figure in Missouri, with Truman Day rallies having been held in Poplar Bluff, Missouri since at least 1966. ^[6] However, May 8 was not officially designated a state holiday until June 1967 with the passage of House Bill 154 ^{[7] [8]} . Governor Warren E. Hearnes celebrated the first Truman Day by unveiling a statue of Truman at Culver-Stockton College in Canton, Missouri in 1968 ^[9] .

In 2010, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon proposed abolishing the holiday in an effort to reduce the state's budget; ^[10] however, the effort was unsuccessful. ^[11]

See also [ edit ]

• Public holidays in Missouri

References [ edit ]

External links [ edit ]

• State employees still get Truman Day off ? this year at least ...
• Section 9-035 May 8, Truman Day.
• Holidays: Truman Day in the United States