THANKSGIVING DAY
The Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock on December 11, 1620. That first bitter winter killed nearly half their number, but according to William Bradford's History of Plymouth Plantation there was plenty of food in the summer of 1621, and according to Bradford and Winslow in Mourt's Relation they invited the Indian friends who had helped them to join in a three-day feast in autumn of that year. Bradford says there was available in the country around "a great store of wild Turkies," along with ducks and geese. Some people say that the word "turkeys" refers to any wild fowl, but Bradford distinctly mentions both. This "thanksgiving" feast was not repeated the following year, which was a hard one. But in the summer of 1623, during a severe drought, the pilgrims gathered in a prayer service, praying for rain. When a long, steady rain followed the very next day, Governor Bradford proclaimed another day of Thanksgiving, again inviting their Indian friends.
According to Bradford, when the colony first began in winter of 1620, the work and the fruits of the work were all communal, and while this may have been an economic and social necessity in the beginning, for survival's sake, it quickly broke down, because there was little motive to work when you didn't benefit from your work. "The experience that was had in this common course and condition, tried sundry years and that amongst godly and sober men, may well evince the vanity of that conceit of Plato's and other ancients applauded by some of later times; and that the taking away of property and bringing in community into a commonwealth would make them happy and flourishing; as if they were wiser than God." The Pilgrim's had even more to be thankful for when their economic systems improved.
About fifty years later, on June 20, 1676, the town council of Charlestown, Massachusetts, proclaimed June 29 as a day of thanksgiving. This thanksgiving celebration probably did not include the Indians, for we read in the proclamation expressions of thanks to God for recent victories over "the heathen natives". Relations between colonists and Indians were breaking down. This is the oldest extant American Thanksgiving Day proclamation.
During the 1700s, it was common practice for individual colonies to observe days of thanksgiving throughout each year. Later in the 18th century each of the states periodically would designate a day of thanksgiving in honor of a military victory, adoption of a state constitution or a bountiful crop. For example, a Thanksgiving Day was held in December of 1777 by all 13 colonies nationwide, commemorating the surrender of British General Burgoyne at Saratoga. These observations were not repeated as yearly events; they were one-time celebrations. And a Thanksgiving day for most of American history was generally a day set aside for prayer, repentance, and fasting, not a day marked by plentiful food and drink as is today's custom, although it might be associated with another separate celebration day; and the word "holiday" meant a "holy day", not just a day off from normal affairs as is the connotation today. And days of thanksgiving were not
George Washington's proclamation of October 3, 1789, the year of his inauguration as first President of the United States of America, represents the first to be so designated by the new national government of the United States of America. That same year, the Protestant Episcopal Church, of which President Washington was a member, announced that the first Thursday in November would become its regular day for giving thanks, "unless another day be appointed by the civil authorities." On January 1 of 1795, Washington called for another Thanksgiving Day to be held February 19 of that year. There was some opposition to the idea of national days of Thanksgiving, as there was discord among the colonies, many feeling the hardships of a few Pilgrims did not warrant a national holiday. Later, President Thomas Jefferson scoffed at the idea of having a day of thanksgiving.
During his administration, President Lincon issued many proclamations for days of Thanksgiving: for example, on November 28, 1861, he ordered government departments closed for a local day of thanksgiving. Again, these were one-time events. But on October 3, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation calling for the observance of the lastThursday of November each year as a national holiday. This holiday, the one we now celebrate annually as Thanksgiving, was recommended to Lincoln by Sarah Josepha Hale, a prominent magazine editor, whose efforts eventually led to what we recognize as Thanksgiving. Hale wrote many editorials championing her cause in her Boston Ladies' Magazine, and later, in Godey's Lady's Book. Finally, after a 36-year campaign of writing editorials and letters to governors and presidents, beginning in 1827, her efforts paid off. One of her letters to Lincoln urged him to have the "day of our annual Thanksgiving made a National and fixed Union Festival." According to an April 1, 1864 letter from John Nicolay, one of Lincoln's secretaries, the actual Proclamation document was written by Secretary of State William Seward, and the original was in his handwriting. Fellow Cabinet member Gideon Welles recorded in his diary on October 3 that he complimented Seward on his work. A year later, the manuscript was sold to benefit Union troops and since then has disappeared.
It was after this holiday was established as an annual event that it began more and more to be celebrated as a feast - in part because of the growing immigrant population of the U.S. which absorbed the legends of the founding of America and combined them with their own delight in the prosperity of their new country. Already in the 1880s descriptions of Thanksgiving feasts and how to prepare them begin to show up in newspapers and magazines.
In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt moved this annual holiday to the third Thursday of November to extend the Christmas shopping season and boost the economy. Thanksgiving had been celebrated on the last Thursday of November, according to President Lincoln's proclamation, but that had normally been the fourth Thursday, though this was not specified. However, in 1933 and again in 1939, there were five Thursdays in November, and people normally didn't start Christmas shopping till after Thanksgiving, so there were fewer shopping days till Christmas on these two years and business leaders around the country were upset. So in 1939 FDR moved Thanksgiving to the 23rd rather than the 30th, but this upset small businesses who feared losing out to larger ones, calendar-makers who had to plan years ahead for production, and traditionalists who were positive that the Pilgrims had celebrated Thanksgiving on the last Thursday of November (which of course really only dated back to Lincoln). Individual states established Thanksgiving, some on the 23rd and some on the 30th, which was even worse, as families in neighboring states often had different Thanksgivings and couldn't celebrate together. So after a storm of protest, in 1941 Congress changed the holiday to the fourth Thursday in November (rather than the last Thursday in November, although the two are usually the same) where it was finally sanctioned as an offically recognized civil holiday. On November 26 of the following year, FDR proclaimed Thanksgiving and asked Americans to follow Congress's lead.
Every Thanksgiving proclamation made in the history of the American colonies and states has included terms of penitence and gratitude toward God, recognition of His sovereignty and chastisement in times of affliction, and appeals to the people to keep Thanksgiving on these same terms. The only exception is the last one - FDR's - which does not include expressions of repentance or recognition of affliction as God's chastisement.
Unless things change radically, it is impossible that any proclamation of a day of Thanksgiving will ever be made again, and if one is, it will certainly not include expressions of penitence or even gratitude to the God of the Bible, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. President Bush contributed to our growing inabililty to do so as a nation when he participated in the religiously pluralistic service at the National Cathedral shortly after 9/11. To make a proclamation such as Washington, Lincoln, or FDR did would bring cries of outrage from every quarter for it would radically offend the current state religion of our country.
According to Bradford, when the colony first began in winter of 1620, the work and the fruits of the work were all communal, and while this may have been an economic and social necessity in the beginning, for survival's sake, it quickly broke down, because there was little motive to work when you didn't benefit from your work. "The experience that was had in this common course and condition, tried sundry years and that amongst godly and sober men, may well evince the vanity of that conceit of Plato's and other ancients applauded by some of later times; and that the taking away of property and bringing in community into a commonwealth would make them happy and flourishing; as if they were wiser than God." The Pilgrim's had even more to be thankful for when their economic systems improved.
About fifty years later, on June 20, 1676, the town council of Charlestown, Massachusetts, proclaimed June 29 as a day of thanksgiving. This thanksgiving celebration probably did not include the Indians, for we read in the proclamation expressions of thanks to God for recent victories over "the heathen natives". Relations between colonists and Indians were breaking down. This is the oldest extant American Thanksgiving Day proclamation.
During the 1700s, it was common practice for individual colonies to observe days of thanksgiving throughout each year. Later in the 18th century each of the states periodically would designate a day of thanksgiving in honor of a military victory, adoption of a state constitution or a bountiful crop. For example, a Thanksgiving Day was held in December of 1777 by all 13 colonies nationwide, commemorating the surrender of British General Burgoyne at Saratoga. These observations were not repeated as yearly events; they were one-time celebrations. And a Thanksgiving day for most of American history was generally a day set aside for prayer, repentance, and fasting, not a day marked by plentiful food and drink as is today's custom, although it might be associated with another separate celebration day; and the word "holiday" meant a "holy day", not just a day off from normal affairs as is the connotation today. And days of thanksgiving were not
George Washington's proclamation of October 3, 1789, the year of his inauguration as first President of the United States of America, represents the first to be so designated by the new national government of the United States of America. That same year, the Protestant Episcopal Church, of which President Washington was a member, announced that the first Thursday in November would become its regular day for giving thanks, "unless another day be appointed by the civil authorities." On January 1 of 1795, Washington called for another Thanksgiving Day to be held February 19 of that year. There was some opposition to the idea of national days of Thanksgiving, as there was discord among the colonies, many feeling the hardships of a few Pilgrims did not warrant a national holiday. Later, President Thomas Jefferson scoffed at the idea of having a day of thanksgiving.
During his administration, President Lincon issued many proclamations for days of Thanksgiving: for example, on November 28, 1861, he ordered government departments closed for a local day of thanksgiving. Again, these were one-time events. But on October 3, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation calling for the observance of the lastThursday of November each year as a national holiday. This holiday, the one we now celebrate annually as Thanksgiving, was recommended to Lincoln by Sarah Josepha Hale, a prominent magazine editor, whose efforts eventually led to what we recognize as Thanksgiving. Hale wrote many editorials championing her cause in her Boston Ladies' Magazine, and later, in Godey's Lady's Book. Finally, after a 36-year campaign of writing editorials and letters to governors and presidents, beginning in 1827, her efforts paid off. One of her letters to Lincoln urged him to have the "day of our annual Thanksgiving made a National and fixed Union Festival." According to an April 1, 1864 letter from John Nicolay, one of Lincoln's secretaries, the actual Proclamation document was written by Secretary of State William Seward, and the original was in his handwriting. Fellow Cabinet member Gideon Welles recorded in his diary on October 3 that he complimented Seward on his work. A year later, the manuscript was sold to benefit Union troops and since then has disappeared.
It was after this holiday was established as an annual event that it began more and more to be celebrated as a feast - in part because of the growing immigrant population of the U.S. which absorbed the legends of the founding of America and combined them with their own delight in the prosperity of their new country. Already in the 1880s descriptions of Thanksgiving feasts and how to prepare them begin to show up in newspapers and magazines.
In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt moved this annual holiday to the third Thursday of November to extend the Christmas shopping season and boost the economy. Thanksgiving had been celebrated on the last Thursday of November, according to President Lincoln's proclamation, but that had normally been the fourth Thursday, though this was not specified. However, in 1933 and again in 1939, there were five Thursdays in November, and people normally didn't start Christmas shopping till after Thanksgiving, so there were fewer shopping days till Christmas on these two years and business leaders around the country were upset. So in 1939 FDR moved Thanksgiving to the 23rd rather than the 30th, but this upset small businesses who feared losing out to larger ones, calendar-makers who had to plan years ahead for production, and traditionalists who were positive that the Pilgrims had celebrated Thanksgiving on the last Thursday of November (which of course really only dated back to Lincoln). Individual states established Thanksgiving, some on the 23rd and some on the 30th, which was even worse, as families in neighboring states often had different Thanksgivings and couldn't celebrate together. So after a storm of protest, in 1941 Congress changed the holiday to the fourth Thursday in November (rather than the last Thursday in November, although the two are usually the same) where it was finally sanctioned as an offically recognized civil holiday. On November 26 of the following year, FDR proclaimed Thanksgiving and asked Americans to follow Congress's lead.
Every Thanksgiving proclamation made in the history of the American colonies and states has included terms of penitence and gratitude toward God, recognition of His sovereignty and chastisement in times of affliction, and appeals to the people to keep Thanksgiving on these same terms. The only exception is the last one - FDR's - which does not include expressions of repentance or recognition of affliction as God's chastisement.
Unless things change radically, it is impossible that any proclamation of a day of Thanksgiving will ever be made again, and if one is, it will certainly not include expressions of penitence or even gratitude to the God of the Bible, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. President Bush contributed to our growing inabililty to do so as a nation when he participated in the religiously pluralistic service at the National Cathedral shortly after 9/11. To make a proclamation such as Washington, Lincoln, or FDR did would bring cries of outrage from every quarter for it would radically offend the current state religion of our country.
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