Facts about thanks giving day
It is time for the thanks giving day or more commonly known as the turkey day. This day is celebrated in the entire United States and Canada. In the United States thanks giving day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of the month of November while in Canada it is observed on the Second Monday of October. This Thanks giving, Positivemed has brought for you a list of fun facts about this day and its history.
1. As per calories control council, an average American consumes more than 4500 calories on the thanks giving day. More than 64000 grocery stores remain open for the Americans to shop for their thanksgiving feast.
2. The Plymouth pilgrims that sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to reach North America were the first people to celebrate thanks giving day in 1621. They sailed on a ship which was known as Mayflower. Plymouth is now known as Massachusetts.
3. Sarah Joseph Hale who was the author “Mary had a lamb” worked really hard and played the most important role in getting Thanksgiving day officially recognised as a national holiday.
4. The first Nation wide celebration of Thanksgiving in the United States took place in the year 1775. It was done to celebrate the victory at Saratoga during the American Revolution.
5. Since Harry Truman, every United States president has followed the tradition of pardoning a turkey on the thanks giving day.
6. The national turkey federation estimated that about 46 million turkeys which is 20% of the annual turkey production is consumed on the thanks giving day.
7. As per a survey conducted by National Turkey foundation, around 88% of Americans admit eating turkey on the thanks giving day whose average weight is 15 pounds. This means that 690 million pounds of turkey are consumed in the US on the thanks giving day.
8. The first thanks giving celebration lasted for around 3 days and the feast included things like Lobster, fish, chicken, rabbit, chestnuts, beans, squashes, leeks, onions, dried fruits, honey, cabbage, carrots, eggs, goat and radishes.
9. As per statistics, people of California are the biggest consumers of the turkey bird in the United States.
10 The first Friday after the Thanks giving day is recognised as the Black Friday in the United States. It marks the beginning of Christmas shopping in the US.
11. In the year 1939, President Roosevelt declared that thanks giving would take place on 23 November and not on 30 November. He did so to give the people of America some more days for Christmas shopping. It was on December 26 1941, when congress passed a law so that all Americans can celebrate unified thanks giving on the fourth Thursday of November.
12. In the year 1863, President Lincoln proclaimed last Thursday of the November as the official day of giving thanks and praises.
13. The turkey consumption for Thanks giving this year is estimated to decline by around 5% in comparison with the turkey consumption on thanks giving in 2012. US also imports Turkeys for Thanks giving, most of which comes from Canada.
14. The exact date of first Thanks giving largely remain a mystery however some people believe that it fell somewhere between 21 September and 9 November 1621.
15. In the year 2001, The US postal service Issued a thanks giving stamp. This stamp was designed by the artist Margaret Cusack and had ‘we give thanks’ written on it.
Source- http://www.whsv.com/seasonal/misc/33852054.html
Source- http://www.austindailyherald.com/2013/11/enjoy-this-thanksgiving-with-these-fun-facts/
Source- http://americanhistory.about.com/od/holidays/a/thanksgiving_ff.htm
Source- http://www.sunniebunniezz.com/holiday/thankday.htm