There is more to know about the day!
Usually, it is considered that Thanksgiving is all about paying thanks to the blessings we own, whether it is wealth, prosperity, relationships, health, or food.
The profusion we have in our lives and celebrating it with roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie, cranberry sauce, vegetables, and much more are associated with the day!
The history of this day has some interesting facts about thanksgiving than just being expressing gratitude to the abundance we have in our lives. The day ties back to the entrepreneurial spirit, shows, economic recovery, and feasting.
Sarah Josepha Hale swayed opinion and congressed many years to make it an official holiday
The day is the result of the determination of Sarah Josepha Hale. Her fidelity to the day started in 1827, she founded it with national pride. She wanted to make this day a permanent custom of America, and for the cause, she was determined, thus in 1863, President Lincoln declared Thanksgiving as a national holiday. Since it was declared during the civil war, some people think of it as an effort to restore peace in the country.
Formerly the day was celebrated in mid-October rather than November
On October 3, 1863, Abraham Lincoln Proclaimed Thanksgiving as a national holiday. Although there is no exact information found about the first Thanksgiving celebration, but later the president assigned it to the last Thursday of November. Possibly, it was assigned to correspond to the date of the pilgrims’ first arrival (Mayflower) in New England.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt renovated the date of Thanksgiving
In 1939 FDR changed the date of Thanksgiving to a week earlier hope to lessen the depression. He believed that prolonging the shopping season may result in increasing spending as well as alleviating the despair. This change led some states to conflict for almost two years because some states refused to accept the change.
Finally, in 1941, FDR declared the fourth Thursday of November as an official holiday for Thanksgiving irrespective of the last Thursday of November.
The leftovers of Thanksgiving piloted the first-ever TV dinner.
The First-ever TV dinner was piloted of the leftovers of thanksgiving. The 260 tons of leftover turkey meat creatively utilized by food corporation Swanson in 1953. They used around 5000 aluminum trays and hand packers to make a thanksgiving-inspired meal from the leftover meat cornbread dressing, peas, sweet potatoes, and gravy. The ten million of the total meal sold in the first year of production and the idea also founded the frozen meal industry.
Lobster, seal, and swan were likely on the menu of the first Thanksgiving in Plymouth
In 1621, the menu of Thanksgiving did not include turkey, but it later became part of it. Only a few know the actual menu of Thanksgiving however, the pilgrims and Wampanoag Native Americans continued to feast for three days, in which they both provided meals. The pilgrims hunted local birds including swans, while the Wampanoag brought deer. It is also known that since the area was closed to the sea, so due to availability Lobster and Seal were also part of the meal.
Thanksgiving Day football games started in the 1870s.
Football was not even a professional sport until thanksgiving tradition came into effect. However, turkey day football was played before even people started to watch sports on TV. In the first-ever thanksgiving match, Yale defeated Princeton in 1876, the sport evolved from hybrid rugby to the game we know today. The game became part of high school and college sports and stayed for almost fifty years. In 1920 when the National Football League was established, they started organizing six Thanksgiving matches each year.
Only male turkeys make the sound ‘gobble, gobble’
The sound of gobble, gobble which is known for Thanksgiving is only the characteristic of male turkey, whereas female turkeys do not gobble, but they make a sound like cackling and purring. For this reason, the male turkeys are also known as Gobblers.
Plumbers stay busy after the day of Thanksgiving
According to the Roto-Rooter (a famous plumbing company), the day following Thanksgiving is the busiest day of the year for Plumbers. It may seem a joke, but it is correct plumbers stay alert as the leftover potato peels, turkey grease, rice, and stuffing, may clog the drains.
The history of this day has a dark side too
The commemoration of Thanksgiving is not only a means of paying thanks to abundance in our lives, but it also reminds us that millions of Native Americans died when Europeans were settling and that the indigenous life was remarkably changed due to the arrival of the English. Many honor this day as the National Day of Mourning, reflecting that the stories we heard in childhood do not depict the exact difficult circumstances of the place evolving into a home.
The British celebrate “Brits-giving” Instead of Thanksgiving
The British did embrace American tradition to show gratitude to the blessings of their nation but in their own specific ways. They do not officially celebrate Thanksgiving, but the Brits-giving. Although, they changed the name of this gentle tradition, however, the meaning stood the same and that is openly accepted by Americans.
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