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Thanksgiving is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November (which became the uniform date country-wide in 1941). [2] [3] Outside the United States, it is sometimes called American Thanksgiving to distinguish it from the Canadian holiday of the same name and related celebrations in other regions.
The Thanksgiving holiday's history in North America is rooted in English traditions dating from the Protestant Reformation. It also has aspects of a harvest festival, even though the harvest in New England occurs well before the late-November date on which the modern Thanksgiving holiday is celebrated. [1] [2]
Several presidents opposed days of national thanksgiving, with Thomas Jefferson openly denouncing such a proclamation. [19] That was seen as ironic because Jefferson had proclaimed a day of Thanksgiving while he was the governor of Virginia. By 1855, 16 states celebrated Thanksgiving (14 on the fourth Thursday of November, and two on the third).
According to the History Channel, the first Thanksgiving was celebrated by the Pilgrims in Plymouth, Massachusetts in November of 1621.While the traditional story says the Pilgrims shared a feast ...
As Thanksgiving approaches, and Americans prepare to stuff themselves full of turkey and pumpkin pie, it's important to know the history behind the annual fall holiday. Especially because the ...
Nov. 22—The popular belief is that Thanksgiving was introduced the America by the Pilgrims and Puritans in the 1620s, but the idea of a fall celebration wasn't new to the Americas. While it wasn ...
"The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth" (1914) By Jennie A. Brownscombe. In the 1840s, American writer Sarah Josepha Hale read an account of the 1621 event, connected the feast to contemporary Thanksgiving celebrations, [15]: 26 and began advocating for a national Thanksgiving holiday in 1846.
However, Lincoln declared Thanksgiving Day be held on the last Thursday of November in 1863, "hoping to reconcile a country in the throes of the Civil War." This is why Thanksgiving is a national ...