In any case, just as newspaper people like myself often brought out previously published stories at certain times of the year, such as during holiday times, I too have a piece I would like to share with you now – an excerpt from the Thanksgiving blog I wrote a year ago:
History of Thanksgiving
You may be interested to know a little bit of the history behind this particular holiday. For example:
Thanksgiving did not become an official national holiday until 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln declared a National Day of Thanksgiving and Praise.
Various types of thanksgivings, however, had been around since the days of the Pilgrims, in 1621, when the First Thanksgiving in the new World was celebrated at the Plymouth Plantation, attended by both settlers and native Americans.
The Massachusetts Bay Colony celebrated Thanksgiving for the first time in 1630, and a number of times since then up until 1680, when it became an annual festival in that colony.
Ben’s own Thanksgiving days
And, in my own lifetime, during the days of the Revolutionary War, the first national proclamation of Thanksgiving was issued by the Continental Congress in 1777 from its temporary location in York, Pennsylvania.
In 1789, the brand-new country of the United States of America had its first official Thanksgiving Day designated by the new federal government, thanks to President George Washington.
And, as I understand it, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City was established for the first time in 1924. Together with the parade in Detroit, the Macy’s parade is only the second-oldest such parade in the country.
Philadelphia claims the first parade!
The oldest Thanksgiving Day parade, actually, I’m proud to say, originated in my home town of Philadelphia, began in 1920 as the Gimbel’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and now known as the 6abc Dunkin’ Donuts Parade.
So there you have it – a quick history lesson on Thanksgiving from someone who really has “been there!”
Your humble servant,
B.Franklin