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| Happy Thanksgiving |
Today is Thanksgiving Day in the USA. From the Staff of
Review This Reviews we wish you a very Happy and Thankful Day.
Thanksgiving Day History
On this Thanksgiving Day, I thought I would share a few history facts for
your enjoyment. If you'd like you could use these to share or quiz
family and friends as you gather for the holiday. They could make
great conversation starters too. My reference for this
information is history.com.
- It is commonly thought that 1621 was the year of the first Thanksgiving in America. During the fall of this year the Colonists and the Wampanoag Indians shared a feast to celebrate the harvest.
- The first Thanksgiving was not just one day but was a three-day festival.
- The most likely menu for this feast was deer, Indian corn, fowl, barley and nuts, lobster and mussels.
- This first feast did not become an annual tradition for centuries later.
- In 1789 George Washington declared a national holiday for Thanksgiving and it was celebrated that year on Thursday, November 26th. But still it did not become an annual holiday nationwide.
- In 1827 Sarah Josephia Hale (she is an author best known for the writing the nursery rhyme "Mary Had a Little Lamb") started a 30-year campaign to make Thanksgiving an annual holiday. She even published recipe cards for Turkey, Stuffing, and Pumpkin Pie.
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Finally in 1863 during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln
proclaimed a National Day of Thanksgiving to be held each year in November.
Thanksgiving Traditions Today
Menu
Today the most common Thanksgiving menus include:
- Turkey
- Dressing
- Mashed Potatoes
- Cranberry Sauce
- Pumpkin Pie
Parades
Another tradition in America is the Thanksgiving Parade. For those
that don't go to a parade they may watch the big Thanksgiving Day parade
from New York City on television.
Volunteering
Volunteerism is big on Thanksgiving too. Communities collect food
for the needy and serve hot meals for those less fortunate.
Pardoning a Turkey
In 1989 President Bush came up with a new quirky tradition of pardoning a
turkey. This tradition has carried on with each President since that
time. This is a fun tradition that is seen on the "news" each
year. The turkey will then be able to live out its life on a
farm.
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| Fall Harvest |
As you and your family celebrate the holiday may you take time out to remember to be thankful.
Happy Thanksgiving
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What an and interesting history of Thanksgiving! Who knew that the first Thanksgiving feast included deer, barley, lobsters and mussels, or that the woman who penned “Mary Had a Little Lamb” waged a 30-year campaign to make Thanksgiving a national holiday and shaped what would become the traditional holiday menu? Wishing you and yours a wonderful Thanksgiving!
ReplyDeleteHappy Thanksgiving to you and yours, Mary Beth. Enjoyed your history of Thanksgiving.
ReplyDeleteTo me, Thanksgiving has always been a 'sharing' day. Since my hubby was in broadcasting, like yours, staff always had to work on the holiday. For many years we shared our Thanksgiving table with someone from the station who had to work, was single and thus lived alone, and lived too far from family to go home for the holiday. Instead he or they would come to dinner and it always made the day more special.
Thanks Pat, I have a similar memory that is also very special when we had a single guy from the radio station share our Thanksgiving meal.
DeleteHappy Thanksgiving to you and your family! Thank you for the interesting history and traditions of Thanksgiving. Hope you have a really wonderful day!
ReplyDeleteHappy Thanksgiving. A wonderful day to take time to count our blessings.
ReplyDeleteHappy Thanksgiving to all the people who are celebrating this holiday. So many interesting tidbits of information that would be great for a holiday trivia round or two at the family gathering. Have a wonderful time with your family and friends.
ReplyDeleteEven if I have heard it before, it is nice to be reminded of where and how our Thanksgiving traditions started. I did not know that Sarah Josephia Hale campaigned for 30 years to make Thanksgiving an annual event. Very interesting tidbit of historical information! Hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving celebration this year.
ReplyDelete