We all love our traditions, and Thanksgiving is a wonderfully special event in the
American calendar.
I knew all about the food traditions of turkey and pumpkin and pecan pies, but I
wanted to know more and have thoroughly enjoyed discovering some of these lesser
known facts about celebrating Thanksgiving.
1. The Presidential Raccoon: Consider the year 1926, when President
Coolidge, perhaps in a moment of quiet desperation for something other
than the pedestrian turkey, was presented with a live raccoon. The beast,
destined for the dining table, instead found clemency and companionship.
2. The Original Halftime Show: Cast your mind back to 1876, when
Thanksgiving was graced with its first football game between Yale and
Princeton, a tradition as peculiar and enduring as the British penchant for
tea and scones.
3. The Unwitting Birth of the TV Dinner: In a twist worthy of a festive farce,
Swanson, faced with the spectre of 260 tons of turkey leftovers in 1953,
inadvertently spawned the TV dinner. A cultural revolution delivered in
aluminium trays, an ode to the ingenuity born of overabundance.
4. Buffalo’s Runners: With dry amusement, one can recount the first Turkey
Trot of 1896 in Buffalo, New York. A mere six runners, embarking on a
Thanksgiving morning race, a quaint precursor to today’s clamour for fitness
trackers and personal bests.
5. Zoo on the Avenue: The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, which in its 1924
infancy featured live zoo animals. Imagine lions, tigers, and bears (Oh my!)
strolling down the block. Today’s balloons might be full of hot air, but they’re
a bit easier to wrangle.
6. A Christmas Carol’s Thanksgiving Roots: “Jingle Bells,” now as much a
part of Christmas as mince pies and mistletoe, was originally sung with huge
enthusiasm at every Thanksgiving feast.
7. Drinksgiving Revelry: The night before Thanksgiving, known as
‘Drinksgiving,’ is a night that rivals New Year’s Eve in its lubricated
exuberance, a testament to the human capacity for finding any excuse for a
tipple.
8. A Feast with a Side of History: The early Thanksgivings weren’t all about
harmony and harvest. They sometimes came after less-than-festive events
between settlers and Native Americans, reminding us that history has many
layers.
American calendar.
I knew all about the food traditions of turkey and pumpkin and pecan pies, but I
wanted to know more and have thoroughly enjoyed discovering some of these lesser
known facts about celebrating Thanksgiving.
1. The Presidential Raccoon: Consider the year 1926, when President
Coolidge, perhaps in a moment of quiet desperation for something other
than the pedestrian turkey, was presented with a live raccoon. The beast,
destined for the dining table, instead found clemency and companionship.
2. The Original Halftime Show: Cast your mind back to 1876, when
Thanksgiving was graced with its first football game between Yale and
Princeton, a tradition as peculiar and enduring as the British penchant for
tea and scones.
3. The Unwitting Birth of the TV Dinner: In a twist worthy of a festive farce,
Swanson, faced with the spectre of 260 tons of turkey leftovers in 1953,
inadvertently spawned the TV dinner. A cultural revolution delivered in
aluminium trays, an ode to the ingenuity born of overabundance.
4. Buffalo’s Runners: With dry amusement, one can recount the first Turkey
Trot of 1896 in Buffalo, New York. A mere six runners, embarking on a
Thanksgiving morning race, a quaint precursor to today’s clamour for fitness
trackers and personal bests.
5. Zoo on the Avenue: The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, which in its 1924
infancy featured live zoo animals. Imagine lions, tigers, and bears (Oh my!)
strolling down the block. Today’s balloons might be full of hot air, but they’re
a bit easier to wrangle.
6. A Christmas Carol’s Thanksgiving Roots: “Jingle Bells,” now as much a
part of Christmas as mince pies and mistletoe, was originally sung with huge
enthusiasm at every Thanksgiving feast.
7. Drinksgiving Revelry: The night before Thanksgiving, known as
‘Drinksgiving,’ is a night that rivals New Year’s Eve in its lubricated
exuberance, a testament to the human capacity for finding any excuse for a
tipple.
8. A Feast with a Side of History: The early Thanksgivings weren’t all about
harmony and harvest. They sometimes came after less-than-festive events
between settlers and Native Americans, reminding us that history has many
layers.
9. The Three-Day Festival: The first Thanksgiving, which extended over three
days, eschewed turkey in favour of venison and seafood. It was a true food
marathon which has been shortened over the generations.
10.A Day of Thanks, or Several: The colonial ‘Thanksgivings’ were not the
annual events we know but rather sporadic days of gratitude, for anything
from military triumph to rainfall.
marathon which has been shortened over the generations.
10.A Day of Thanks, or Several: The colonial ‘Thanksgivings’ were not the
annual events we know but rather sporadic days of gratitude, for anything
from military triumph to rainfall.