A time of Thanksgiving has been a part of our culture for hundreds of years, but the nationally recognized holiday was not made official until 1939. For many of us, Thanksgiving is remembered by its humble beginnings in colonial America, when the Native Americans helped puritan settlers survive in the new world by showing them how to live off of the land. A large meal was shared by the Wampanoag Indians and Puritan settlers before the winter. This harvest celebration is remembered as the first Thanksgiving, but the history of our holiday goes way beyond that meal.

Celebrations of Thanksgiving, like this one, were not likely a yearly event in colonial times. Communities shared rations in colonial America, so a large celebration following bountiful harvest times was common. Unlike the Thanksgiving holiday we celebrate today, there was no set date for these celebrations. Dependent on harvest time, the first days set aside for thanksgiving varied from August to November.

Harvest celebrations were not the only days set aside for giving thanks. Other celebrations of Thanksgiving occur throughout American history. President Lincoln declared a national day of Thanksgiving to be on the fourth of every Thursday. He declared this in the summer of 1863 after the success at Gettysburg, explained professor of history, Dr. Steven Greiert.

“He [Lincoln] asked for a day of commemoration, or Thanksgiving, trying to somehow keep the people focused on what was important to the nation,” Greiert
said. “It never became an official holiday during that period.

Lincoln was trying to keep the country together.”

So why do we celebrate Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday every November? In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was conscious of history but was also trying to help the economy by promoting Thanksgiving, Greiert explained.

“This was a time of distress for a lot of people in the United States,” he said. “He wanted people to realize they had a lot to be thankful for even though it was tough times.”

In 1924, the Macy’s day parade first begin, according in History.com. Since in some Novembers there are five Thursdays, business owners and politicians pushed for the fourth Thursday in hopes to increase their holiday sales.

“American’s tend to be nostalgic,” Greiert added. Traditionally, the day after Thanksgiving has been the best sales day of the entire year.
Sophomore Justin Conroy takes advantage of traditional post Thanksgiving sales.

“My family all goes shopping on the Friday after,” Conroy said. “It has become our tradition and we all look forward to it.”

Senior Chelsea Taylor is happy that we have a day set aside regardless of its confusing beginnings.

“Thanksgiving is such a beautiful time of year, people coming together and helping others in need,” Taylor said. “I love spending time with my family. Every year we donate money to local food pantries.”