Thanksgiving History and Traditions

Thanksgiving Prayer

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food,
For love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

Thanksgiving Prayer: Psalm 100

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the lands!
Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into God's presence with singing!
Know that the Lord is God! It is he that made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him, bless his name!
For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures for ever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.

Thanksgiving Prayer: We Give Thanks

Our Father in Heaven,
We give thanks for the pleasure
Of gathering together for this occasion.
We give thanks for this food
Prepared by loving hands.
We give thanks for life,
The freedom to enjoy it all
And all other blessings.
As we partake of this food,
We pray for health and strength
To carry on and try to live as You would have us.
This we ask in the name of Christ,
Our Heavenly Father.

Harry Jewell

Thanksgiving History and Traditions

From eating turkey to the Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City, Thanksgiving is noted for so many traditions! Whether your looking for a history on traditions your family already has or looking for new ways to commemorate the holiday.

Turkey and the Trimmings

Surprisingly, there is no real evidence of turkey being served at the first Thanksgiving feasts in the early 17th century. Apparently, "turkey" was the generic name to describe all fowl. Venison pops up in many historical accounts of the holiday as well as corn, boiled pumpkin, berries, and, possibly shellfish.

Most still incorporate pumpkins in the traditional pie and berries in the form of cranberry sauce with their modern holiday meal.

Festive Traditions and Folklore

By Thanksgiving 1944 Americans were harvesting their Victory Gardens in anticipation of a bountiful holiday. New-reels projected the image of a wartime country where canned goods were being rationed and Americans were called upon to do their part at home.

Economic hard-ship lead to agricultural growth and 20 million people planted gardens, which produced 40% of the nations food. For many gardening became a family event or community activity bringing people together during this tumultuous era. Certainly, a time to give thanks for what one had and appreciate time spent with loved ones.

Most of this holiday's traditions center around food and football! Rather, families have developed their own traditions to stave off their appetites as the smell of turkey fills the house. As the bird is being carved, everyone comes together to feast and to fill their hearts with thanks.

Notable Moments in the Macy's Parade History

1924: Macy's employees decided to entertain the city with a Thanksgiving Day Parade that wound throughout the streets of Manhattan. It was such a success that it became an annual tradition!

1942 - 1944: The only break in the Parade's history came during World War II, when the Parade balloons were donated to the war effort thanks to a rubber shortage.

1945: The first year the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was televised. This was also the first year the Parade toured its current 2.5 mile route.

1979: The first year a broadcast of the Parade was awarded an Emmy award for outstanding achievement. Since then, it has received the award an additional eight times.

Present: Every year, over 2.5 million people watch the parade live from the streets of Manhattan, and 44 million watch on TV.

The First Thanksgiving Feast

The People at the First Thanksgiving

Pilgrims: There were 53 pilgrims at the first Thanksgiving. This number included twenty-two men, thirteen young children, fourteen teenagers, and four married women. Interestingly, all of the pilgrims who were part of the first Thanksgiving were survivors of the Mayflower voyage. By the time the first Thanksgiving occurred, the Mayflower passengers were the only settlers living in New England. The next ship, the Fortune, arrived shortly after the first Thanksgiving.

Indians: According to pilgrim Edward Winston's firsthand account, as written in a letter, there were about ninety Indians who attended the first Thanksgiving. The chief of this particular Indian tribe was Massasoit, which was also disclosed in Winston's letter. The Indians hunted and killed five deer for the feast, which they brought back to share with the pilgrims.

The First Thanksgiving Feast

In the two letters that describe the first Thanksgiving, only a handful of different foods are specifically named. Here is a complete list of the foods mentioned:

Wheat

Indian Corn

Barley

Fowl (including turkey)

Deer

However, according to historical analysis, the pilgrims had a more foods available to them at the time, including traditional Thanksgiving foods such as squashes, pumpkins, leeks and corn meal.

Common Misconceptions

Thanksgiving: A Product of the 19th Century
One of the biggest misconceptions about the first Thanksgiving is that it immediately became an annual tradition. Only a few of the original pilgrims' descendants carried on the tradition and celebrated on December 21, calling it 'Forefathers Day'. In fact, Thanksgiving did not become a yearly holiday until 1863, when Abraham Lincoln made it a national holiday with his Thanksgiving Proclamation.

No Potatoes!
Also, some of the most nostalgic Thanksgiving dinner 'musts' were not present at the first Thanksgiving dinner: There were no potatoes, sweet potatoes or yams (they were not yet introduced to New England), cranberry sauce, or ham!

The Rivalries: Traditional Thanksgiving Day College Football Rivalries

LSU Tigers vs. Arkansas Razorbacks (the Battle for the Golden Boot)

Georgia Bulldogs vs. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (big state rivalry)

Colorado Buffaloes vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers

Texas Longhorns vs. Texas A&M Aggies (the Lone Star Showdown)

Florida Gators vs. Florida State Seminoles (the Sunshine Showdown)

Alabama State University vs. Tuskegee University (The Turkey Day Classic)

Chicago Thanksgiving Day Parade History

1934: Ironically, this Thanksgiving Day Parade started as a Christmas Caravan! Chicago's State Street Council was looking for a way to boost the city's morale during the Great Depression, and proposed a Christmas Parade.

1935 - 1983: Up until 1983, the parade remained an annual Christmas tradition on State Street in Chicago.

1984: This year the parade was sponsored by McDonald's and was known as the Children's Charity Parade. The route also changed from State Street to Michigan Avenue, generating a burst of Christmas shopping down Michigan Avenue.

2002: 2002 was a big year of change for the Parade! The location of the parade was changed back to State Street, and the date was changed to Thanksgiving Day.

2006: McDonald's sponsored the Thanksgiving Parade again, and from this year on the parade was known as the McDonald's Thanksgiving Day Parade.