Thanksgiving Day History

:::The National Archives Celebrates Thanksgiving

"Thanksgiving, like Ambassadors,
Cabinet officers and others
Smeared with political ointment,
Depends for its existence on
Presidential appointment."
--Ogden Nash

On October 3, 1789, President George Washington issued a proclamation naming Thursday, November 26, 1789 as an official holiday of "sincere and humble thanks." The nation then celebrated its first Thanksgiving under its new Constitution.
On October 3, 1863, President Lincoln made the traditional Thanksgiving celebration a nationwide holiday to be commemorated each year on the fourth Thursday of November. In the midst of a bloody Civil War, President Lincoln issued a Presidential Proclamation in which he enumerated the blessings of the American people and called upon his countrymen to "set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of "Thanksgiving."
In 1939 President Franklin D. Roosevelt moved the holiday to the third Thursday of November to lengthen the Christmas shopping season and boost the economy still recovering from the Depression. This move, which set off a national debate, was reversed in 1941 when Congress passed and President Roosevelt approved a joint house resolution establishing, by law, the fourth Thursday in November as Thanksgiving Day.::::

We're knee-deep in Thanksgiving preps here like baking pies, baking mini loaves of our bread, dry rubbing a 20+ pound fresh ham and a 22-26 pound turkey for smoking at o'darkthirty Thursday morning (did you realize smoking those babies takes between 7 and 10 hours? I sure didn't! Poor Dewey....I feel for him...I'm also happy dancin' that I am not the turkey guru here anymore!)

We have our Thanksgiving decoration up....some watercolor turkey cut-outs hung by ribbons, lots of those colored doilies shaped like leaves and pumpkins, also hung by string, and a paper chain in autumn-y colors. All of these are affixed neatly to each other (we faced things back-to-back so they weren't one-sided) with spray adhesive.

Let me just say imo, while absolutely neat and easy, spray adhesive is just plain evil. Be careful of over-spray. That is an extreme under-statement. An extreme extreme. Sheesh louise I have 'adhesive coated' my floor, my table, most the chairs and the pew bench, the printer shelf and no doubt some school book spines also on said shelf. My hands are still tacky....as it my dress! There is a light, tacky film just *everywhere* near as I can tell.

It went quick, but alas, spray adhesive just isn't destined to be an item in our school and craft stash. Did I mention that stuff is just evil??? It's everywhere! Sheesh!

So, we're ready to go. Dewey and Chris will be getting in tomorrow evening. Thursday, before dawn even considers cracking, he'll be awakened (LOL) by the quiet call of the smoker and the feast. Later in the afternoon, our friend Linda and her daughter and niece will arrive for dinner. Only 14 at our table. A small feast :)

And Friday....ha, made you think I was going out for the dreaded Black Friday, heh? Ain't no way, no how, on God's round green earth I'll go any farther than the mailbox and barn Friday. Or even Saturday if I can avoid it. And I'll fight it tooth and nail. The insane folks will do fine without my involvement I'm sure.

Have a great Thanksgiving everyone. Be sure to visit Monday for the Virtual Cookie Exchange Kick-off!!!