Monday, November 15, 2010

Thanksgiving Fun Facts

The first Thanksgiving was not a feast, but rather a time when Native Americans helped Pilgrims by bringing them food and helping them build off the land

Around 280 million turkeys are sold for the Thanksgiving

Fifty percent of Americans put the stuffing inside the Turkey

Twenty percent of cranberries eaten are eaten on Thanksgiving

More than 40 million green bean casseroles are served on Thanksgiving

In October of 1777 all 13 colonies celebrated Thanksgiving for the first time; however it was a one-time affair commemorating a victory over the British at Saratoga

Thanksgiving was first declared a National Day in 1789 by George Washington

Thomas Jefferson mocked the idea of having thanksgiving

Sarah Joseph Hale helped the cause for Thanksgiving by championing her ideas through magazines. Forty years later her idea became a reality when President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday in November as a national day of Thanksgiving in 1863

After Abraham Lincoln's proclamation every president protected the national day, but many changed the times. The latest change was by Franklin Roosevelt who moved Thanksgiving to the second to last Thursday in order to create a longer Christmas shopping season. Citizens disagreed however and the date was changed back two years later.

In 1941 Thanksgiving was finally sanctioned by Congress as the last Thursday in November

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