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Thanksgiving: What's the History of the Holiday and Why Does the United States Celebrate 'Turkey Day'?

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Thanksgiving: What's the History of the Holiday and Why Does the United States Celebrate 'Turkey Day'? Thanksgiving: What's the history of the holiday and why does the United States celebrate 'turkey day'? Thanksgiving Day traditionally kicks off the 'holiday season' in the United States. The day was set in stone by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1939 and approved by Congress in 1941. FDR changed it from Abraham Lincoln's designation as the last Thursday in November (because there are sometimes five Thursdays in the month). While Britons think of it as a warm-up for the Yuletide period, many Americans think it of it as just as important as Christmas. In fact, more people in the US celebrate Thanksgiving than they do Christmas. Thanksgiving Day is a secular holiday in a country that officially separates church and state so this probably makes sense. What is the history of Thanksgiving? Thanksgiving Day can be traced back to the 1621 celebration at the Plymouth Plantation, where the religious refugees from England known popularly as the Pilgrims invited the local Native Americans to a harvest feast after a particularly successful growing season. The previous year's harvests had failed and in the winter of 1620, half of the pilgrims had starved to death. Luckily for the rest, members of the local Wampanoag tribe taught the Pilgrims how to grow corn, beans and squash (the Three Sisters); catch fish, and collect seafood. There are only two contemporary accounts of the 1621 Thanksgiving, but it's clear that turkey was not on the menu. The three-day feast included goose, lobster, cod and deer. Does Britain have an equivalent? Yes, it's called Harvest Day, although it's a lot less of a big deal. While we usually take a few non- perishables down to our local church and enter our autumn vegetables in competitions, Thanksgiving in North America is a much more plentiful and extravagant affair. So why do Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving Day? Pilgrim Edward Winslow wrote a letter about that now-famous meal in 1621 which mentioned a turkey hunt before the dinner. Another theory says the choice of turkey was inspired by Queen Elizabeth I who was eating dinner when she heard that Spanish ships had sunk on their way to attack England. She was so thrilled with the news she ordered another goose be served. Some claim early US settlers roasted turkeys as they were inspired by her actions. Others say that as wild turkeys are native to North America, they were a natural choice for early settlers. Classic Thanksgiving dishes Turkey: and/or ham, goose and duck or turduken (a spatchcocked combo of three whole birds!) Stuffing (also known as dressing): a mix of bread cubes, chopped celery, carrots, onions and sage stuffed inside the turkey for roasting. Chestnuts, chopped bacon or sausage, and raisins or apples are also sometimes included in the stuffing. Pies: pumpkin pies are most common, but pecan, apple, sweet potato and mincemeat pies are also quite popular. Who set the date of Thanksgiving Day? 'The National Thanksgiving Proclamation' was the first formal proclamation of Thanksgiving in America. George Washington, the first president of the United States, made this proclamation on Oct 3, 1789. Then in 1846, author Sarah Josepha Hale waged a one-woman campaign for Thanksgiving to be recognised as a truly national holiday. In the US the day had previously been celebrated only in New England and was largely unknown in the American South. All the other states scheduled their own Thanksgiving holidays at different times, some as early as October and others as late as January. Hale's advocacy for the national holiday lasted 17 years and four presidencies before the letter she wrote to Lincoln was successful. In 1863 at the height of the Civil War he supported legislation which established a national holiday of Thanksgiving on the last Thursday of November. Lincoln perhaps wanted the date to tie in with the anchoring of the Mayflower at Cape Cod, which occurred on Nov 21, 1620. Although we now use the Gregorian calendar. In 1621 the date would have been Nov 11 to the Pilgrims who used the Julian calendar. So Hale finally got her wish. She is perhaps now better known, though, for writing the nursery rhyme 'Mary Had a Little Lamb'. In 1939, President Roosevelt moved Thanksgiving up a week to try and give a boost to retailers before Christmas during the Great Depression. Several states followed FDR’s lead but 16 states refused the holiday shift, leaving the country with rival Thanksgivings. FDR changed his mind after coming under pressure from Congress and in 1941, the a resolution was passed returning the holiday to the fourth Thursday of November. The Presidential reprieve Eating turkey is actually more associated with Thanksgiving than it is Christmas in the States with over 50 million turkeys served up every year in the US. Every year, though, the POTUS ‘pardons’ at least one turkey. This year, President Obama will pardon one of two turkeys at the White House today. Either Tater or Tot will get the stay of execution and live out its days at Virginia Tech. The other will, in all likeliness, become the official national Thanksgiving turkey. Atlantic City mayor Thomas D. Taggart later described the Thanksgiving holiday from 1939–1941 as "Franksgiving". The public presentation of two prize turkeys to the commander-in-chief in the lead-up to Thanksgiving had been a time-honoured photo op since the 1940s. But on Nov 17, 1989 – 200 years after George Washington's proclamation (see above) – President George H.W. Bush formalised the tradition when he pardoned a 50lb turkey in the White House Rose Garden. “Let me assure you," Bush said to the 30 schoolchildren present, "this fine turkey will not end up on anyone’s dinner table, not this guy. He’s granted a presidential pardon as of right now.” Two years earlier Ronald Reagan told the assembled press he would have "pardoned" Charlie, the White House turkey at the ceremony that year when he was asked if he would have pardoned the key players in the Iran-Contra scandal. The presidential turkey pardon has remained an annual Thanksgiving ritual ever since. Annual Macy's parade Another Thanksgiving tradition is the Macy's parade in New York City – an annual pageant of floats, cheerleaders, marching bands and gigantic balloons. The parade dates back to the 1920s when many of the immigrant workers at Macy's department store were keen to celebrate the American holiday with the sort of festival their parents had thrown in Europe. It originally started from 145th Street in Harlem and ended at Herald Square, making a 6-mile (9.7 km) route. The newest route was introduced with the 2012 parade. This change eliminated Times Square and rerouted the parade down Sixth Avenue, a move that was protested by the Times Square BID, Broadway theatre owners and other groups. New York City officials preview the parade route and try to move as many potential obstacles out of the way, including traffic signals. .
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