10 stuffing-filled Thanksgiving facts
- The date of Thanksgiving was once changed to try to boost the economy.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt decided to change the traditional date of Thanksgiving from the last Thursday in November to the second to last Thursday in November in 1939, 1940 and 1941 in order to extend the Christmas shopping season by a week.
- 91% of Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving.
About 280 million turkeys are sold annually for Thanksgiving, which is about seven billion pounds of turkey and about $3 billion dollars’ worth of sales.
- Thomas Jefferson thought the idea of Thanksgiving was ridiculous.
Jefferson was quoted saying that the concept of Thanksgiving was “the most ridiculous idea I’ve ever heard.”
- There are three places in the United States named after the holiday’s main dish.
Turkey, Texas; Turkey Creek, L.A.; and Turkey, N.C. There are also nine townships around the country named “Turkey,” with three of them in Kansas.
- Thanksgiving is the reason for T.V. dinners.
In 1953, Swanson had so much extra turkey (260 tons) that a salesman told them they should package it onto aluminum trays with other sides like sweet potatoes — and the first TV dinner was born!
- The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade began in 1924
400 employees marching from Convent Ave to 145th street in New York City. No large balloons were at this parade, as it featured only live animals from Central Park Zoo.
- Turkey isn’t responsible for drowsiness or the dreaded “food coma.”
Scientists say that extra helping of stuffing, the high-calorie meal or relaxing after a busy work schedule is what makes you drowsy!
- The first Thanksgiving wasn’t eaten with forks.
Only spoons and knives were used during the first Thanksgiving. The reason for the fork being absent was because it was not brought by the pilgrims in 1620. It was introduced ten years later by Governor Winthrop of Massachusetts but it was not brought into popular use until the 18th century.
9. The best way to see if a cranberry is ripe is to bounce it.
If you want to know if a cranberry is ripe then all you need to do it throw it at the ground and measure how high it bounces. As long as it bounces higher than four inches it is ready to be picked. Who knew that is what it takes to make the perfect cranberry sauce for your Thanksgiving. The cranberry is actually one of only three fruits that are native to North America and it is served at 94% of Thanksgiving dinners.
10. It is a Presidential tradition to pardon one turkey each year.
President Truman started this tradition in 1947. He handpicked a turkey and then sent it off to live the rest of its days at Frying Pan Park in Herndon, Virginia. It has become tradition that two turkeys be pardoned (in case the first turkey become unavailable). The people of the United States actually get to vote on the name of the turkey. This year President Obama pardoned a turkey named Courage and had it sent to Disneyland.
Anniston Weber is Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Guidon and a senior this year. She has been involved with the Guidon for three years. In addition to being...
