Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday in the United States and in Canada. U.S. Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. This year it will be on Nov. 24.
Although people enjoy Thanksgiving Day with their loved ones, not everyone knows the history or the reason why it is celebrated.
Let's checkout what this historic day is all about.
History Of Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving Day has roots in English traditions. The first Thanksgiving Day is said to have been celebrated in 1621 at the Plymouth Plantation, where religious refugees from England — known as the Pilgrims — invited the Native Americans to celebrate a successful growing season. The harvest in 1620 had failed and resulted in the death of many Pilgrims.
The Pilgrims learned how to cultivate squash, beans and corns from locals of the Wampanoag tribe. They also learned how to collect seafood and catch fish.
Although, families in the United States include a turkey in their Thanksgiving Day menu, the celebration in 1621 included deer, cod lobster and other food items but no turkey.
So Why Does The Thanksgiving Day Feast Normally Includes A Turkey?
A theory suggests that since wild turkeys were commonly found in North America, it was the preferred meal by early settlers in the continent.
Another theory claims that the Turkey-feast on Thanksgiving started when Queen Elizabeth heard that some Spanish ships sank while they were on the verge of attacking England. The Queen was said to be having dinner when she heard the news and ordered another goose to be served.
Early settlers in the United States were inspired by the Queen's action and roasted turkeys instead when they returned to America.
Thanksgiving Day As A National Holiday
New York was one of the handful states to adopt Thanksgiving holiday. However, there was no specific date when the day was celebrated.
In 1827, Sarah Josepha Hale, a noted editor and writer, started a campaign for establishing Thanksgiving as a national holiday. For about 36 years she wrote to presidents, governors and politicians and finally in 1863, Abraham Lincoln scheduled Thanksgiving Day on the final Thursday of November.
In 1939, Franklin D. Roosevelt moved Thanksgiving Day up a week to spike sales during the Great Depression. In 1941, Roosevelt signed a bill that officially made the fourth Thursday of each November Thanksgiving Day.
How Do People Celebrate?
Most people celebrate Thanksgiving with their families, making it one of the busiest travel days of the year in the United States.
Traditional food items such as roast turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, cornbread form a major part of Thanksgiving feast.
Some families also include breaking the wishbone of the roast turkey as a part of Thanksgiving celebration. Two people take one end of the wishbone, make a wish and pull. It is believed that the person who ends up with larger part of the bone gets their wish.
After the meal, many families get involve in additional activities such as playing board games, watching TV and more.
Helping Others
Although, Thanksgiving Day is a family affair, many people take the opportunity to donate and serve food to homeless shelters and help those in need.
Shopping
The day after Thanksgiving is celebrated as Black Friday, a day when retailers offer massive deals to customers. Thanksgiving is also a busy time for shoppers and a previous Tech Times report highlighted that in 2015 online customers spent $1.096 billion on Thanksgiving Day.
