We have reached November, which means the holidays are right around the corner. To boost our spirits and kick off the season, I thought it might be interesting to share some fun facts about the holiday of giving thanks.
A National Holiday
Up until 1863, the only national holidays that existed in the US were Independence Day and Washington’s Birthday. Thanks to the tireless efforts of a magazine editor named Sarah Josepha Hale, President Lincoln decided to declare the last Thursday in November as a national holiday. On October 3rd, 1863, Thanksgiving was declared a national holiday; however, Congress did not officially set the date into US law until 1941. Interestingly, in 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt tried to change the date of Thanksgiving from the last Thursday in November to the second to last Thursday in November in order to boost the economy. He hoped doing so would help the shopping season during the Depression era. Not all states agreed on this idea; thus, congress was required to step in and officially set the date for Thanksgiving as the fourth Thursday of the month, which ended up being a compromise because the fourth Thursday sometimes falls on the last and sometimes the second to last Thursday of November.
Turkey as a Staple Meal
The first Thanksgiving lasted three days, but there was no turkey. The menu consisted of deer, various types of fowl, flint corn, cod, bass and other types of fish. So why do we eat what we eat on this special holiday? Well, Sara Josepha Hale, who is also the author of “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” suggested multiple recipes fitted for a Thanksgiving feast, some of which include: turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie. Today, 91% of Americans eat turkey for Thanksgiving. Roughly 280 million turkeys are sold each year for the holiday, which adds up to a whopping 7 billion pounds of turkey!
A Holiday Shared with Canadians
Many think Thanksgiving is just an American holiday, but that is not true. Canadians celebrate it as well; however they do so on the second Monday in October.
Macy’s Parade History
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade started in 1924 with over 400 employees. There weren’t any massive balloons or floats, but there were live animals from Central Park Zoo that joined the parade.
Football Tradition
In addition, the tradition of watching football began in 1920 when the NFL started the Thanksgiving Classic games. Since then, the Detroit Lions and the Dallas Cowboys have hosted games on this day, and in 2006, a third game was added with different teams hosting.
-MB