thanksgiving started as a national holiday in 1789.
thanksgiving started as a national holiday in 1789.
when did thanksgiving start as a national holiday?
1789
thanksgiving is a national holiday in the united states, celebrated on the fourth thursday of november. it originated as a harvest festival. thanksgiving has been celebrated nationally on and off since 1789, with a proclamation by george washington after a request by congress. thomas jefferson chose not to observe the holiday, and its celebration was intermittent until the presidency of abraham lincoln, when thanksgiving became a federal holiday in 1863, during the american civil war. lincoln proclaimed a national day of "thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent father who dwelleth in the heavens," to be celebrated on the last thursday in november. under president franklin d. roosevelt, the date was changed to the fourth thursday in november, an innovation that endures to this day. together with christmas and the new year, thanksgiving is a part of the broader fall–winter holiday season in the u.s.
thanksgiving (united states)
hale may be the individual most responsible for making thanksgiving a national holiday in the united states; it had previously been celebrated mostly in new england. each state scheduled its own holiday, some as early as october and others as late as january; it was largely unknown in the american south. her advocacy for the national holiday began in 1846 and lasted 17 years before it was successful. in support of the proposed national holiday, hale wrote letters to five presidents of the united states: zachary taylor, millard fillmore, franklin pierce, james buchanan, and abraham lincoln. her initial letters failed to persuade, but the letter she wrote to lincoln convinced him to support legislation establishing a national holiday of thanksgiving in 1863. the new national holiday was considered a unifying day after the stress of the american civil war. before thanksgiving's addition, the only national holidays celebrated in the united states were washington's birthday and independence day.
sarah josepha hale