Thanksgiving: history and traditions of America's main holiday

The history of the Thanksgiving

Reports of the past tell the story of how the famous Mayflower ship moored off the coast of America, people got off the boat and settled on unfamiliar land. It was from this stage that American history began. The settlers organized their community and began cultivating the land. But things were not so bright, with winter approaching, there was starvation. Unfortunately, almost half of the colonizers died from disease and food shortages.

The help came from Indians. Residents of several tribes helped the survivors of the remaining settlers. They explained how to grow crops on this soil properly and shared some provisions so that the settlement would have the power to cultivate the land.

One year after arriving on the mainland, the pilgrims spent their first Thanksgiving in America. Then, in 1621, settlers and Indians led by their leader gathered at the table. At this feast, everyone present thanked God for their help and mercy. At the same time, the autumn holiday summed up the harvest and marked the arrival of winter.

But the national celebration of Thanksgiving in the United States became only at the time of declaration of independence. George Washington, one of the most legendary presidents of the United States, proposed celebrating the holiday officially in 1789. Along with this idea, they confirmed the exact date – November 26. His follower, Abraham Lincoln, issued a decree that Thanksgiving would be celebrated on the last Thursday of November. But Franklin Roosevelt moved the date to the penultimate Thursday. In these changes to the calendar certificates, it is easy to get confused, and it is difficult to understand when Thanksgiving is. In 1941, Roosevelt set a final date, which is still valid today – on the fourth Thursday of November, all families gather at one table.

Save the turkey

Over the years of Thanksgiving, many traditions have developed around the holiday. For example, no holiday table is complete without a turkey. In total, more than 50 million of these birds are brought to the tables every year.

In this case, every year, the US president saves one of the turkeys. The first documented “mercy” took place in 1865 at the home of Abraham Lincoln. The live turkey was brought for a festive dinner, but President Ted’s son asked to save her life, which was done.

According to some sources, the tradition of pardoning a turkey originated in the 1940s under Harry Truman. Still, he was given a live turkey from the National Federation of Poultry Producers every year (by the way, usually this gift was in the oven). In 1963, President John Kennedy left the turkey alive, saying “she still needs to grow up.”

The awkward moment occurred with Ronald Reagan, who did not manage to arrange a holiday speech, and the bird tried to escape. Reagan exacerbated the situation by addressing the bird and jokingly: “Look, I had a chance to shoot you for days, but I didn’t.”

George W. Bush held the first official turkey mercy ceremony in 1989. Since then, it has been held annually at the White House on the eve of the holiday. Two turkeys are present at the ceremony. The main culprit of the celebration and her “double”, in case something happens to first or it escapes. Presidents give names to such birds and send them to zoos after the ceremony.

According to a long tradition, on Thanksgiving Day, several generations of one family gather at a senior’s home for a holiday dinner. Everyone is saying thank you for all the good that happened last year. On the tables on this day, modern Americans have what they had in their ancestors back in 1621 at the first Thanksgiving dinner. For example, stuffed turkey with cranberry syrup, sweet pumpkin pie and apple cider.