Which President Made Thanksgiving a National Holiday?

The origins of Thanksgiving in the United States date back to the time of the pilgrims and Native Americans. The first Thanksgiving happened 222 years before it received national recognition; however, it was still a widely celebrated event when it was unofficial. President Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday in the mid 1800s, part of the rich history of this holiday.

In 1863, when Abraham Lincoln was serving as the president of the United States, he declared Thanksgiving a national holiday. After that, all the subsequent presidents also recognized the day as a national holiday. However, the actual date of Thanksgiving was still not determined as we know it today.

President Roosevelt had decided that Thanksgiving should be celebrated on the third Thursday of every November. That decision was changed by Congress in 1941 when they decided that Thanksgiving should be celebrated on the fourth Thursday of every November. Since then, the date of Thanksgiving has remained the same.

Origins of Thanksgiving

The very first Thanksgiving occurred in 1621, when the pilgrims and Native Americans decided to join together to give thanks to God for the plentiful harvest that they received that year. However, there was more to the meal than meets the eye.

At times, the Native Americans were skeptical of the new visitors, and the Europeans often tried to take over their land. Therefore, conflicts and discord existed between these people, yet they all sat down together for a meal as a reminder that they were all sharing the same land.

Today, people can look back and realize that despite the problems faced by Native Americans and Europeans in the past, Thanksgiving was not only a sign of thanks to God for an abundance of food, but also a symbol of friendship, gratitude, and mutual respect among two types of very different people.

After this first Thanksgiving, the holiday was not celebrated annually. Instead, Thanksgiving was celebrated sporadically and when people felt like giving thanks.

The celebrations were celebrated at a national level after the Revolutionary War ended. The Europeans finally had their own nation, and part of the feast was to give thanks for that. At this point though, Thanksgiving still had not been declared a national holiday.

Thanksgiving Today

We can thank President Lincoln for formally instituting a day off to enjoy delicious food and to spend time with loved ones. Thanksgiving does not necessarily carry the same implications that it did four and a half centuries ago.

Today in urban, suburban, and even some rural areas, people are not thankful for a harvest specifically. Some people do not even incorporate God into the Thanksgiving celebration anymore. Although the traditions have changed, what remains is that people celebrating Thanksgiving are thankful for something, whether it be for enough food, shelter, family, friends, love, religion, or life amongst so many other cherished gifts.