Thanksgiving celebrates the autumn harvest and is a day for families to gather and share a traditional meal, originating from 1621. It falls on the fourth Thursday in November and is a major federal holiday; airports and highways are especially busy. Many workers also receive the following Friday off unofficially.
📜 History & Origins
Thanksgiving traces to a 1621 harvest feast shared by the Pilgrims of Plymouth Colony and the Wampanoag people, who had helped the settlers survive their first winter. Days of thanksgiving were proclaimed sporadically for over two centuries. Sarah Josepha Hale, editor of Godey's Lady's Book, campaigned for decades for a national day, and in 1863 President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day for the final Thursday of November. In 1941 Congress fixed it as the fourth Thursday of November.
🎉 How It's Celebrated
Families gather for a large shared meal — the most-traveled holiday of the year alongside Christmas. The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City and NFL football games are televised fixtures. The president 'pardons' one or two turkeys at the White House. The following Friday, Black Friday, kicks off Christmas shopping, and many take the day off.
🍽️ Traditional Foods
Roast turkey is the centerpiece, with stuffing (or dressing), mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, sweet potato casserole, and green bean casserole. Pumpkin pie, pecan pie, and apple pie are traditional desserts. Regional variants include oyster stuffing in coastal areas and tamale-making (tamaladas) in Mexican American homes.
