November 26 - Thanksgiving Day is Officially Established by FDR

This Day in History: 26 November 2020

 

26 November 1941

 

79 years ago, today, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a bill that officially declared the fourth Thursday in November to be Thanksgiving Day. The tradition of celebrating the holiday on Thursday dates back to the colonies of Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay, when a famous Thanksgiving observance occurred in 1621. Plymouth governor William Bradford had invited local members of the Wampanoag tribe to join the Pilgrims in a festival held in gratitude for the bounty of the season. Throughout the 17^th century, this became an annual custom in New England. However, it was not until 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving to officially fall on the last Thursday of November, that the modern holiday was celebrated nationally.

 

With a few exceptions, Lincoln's action was followed annually by every subsequent president, until 1939. In this year, Franklin D. Roosevelt departed from tradition by declaring November 23 as Thanksgiving Day, the next to last Thursday. Controversy surrounded this deviation, and some Americans even refused to honour this declaration. Over the next two years, Roosevelt repeated the unpopular proclamation. However, on this day, he admitted his mistake and signed a bill into law that officially cemented the fourth Thursday of November as the national holiday of Thanksgiving.

 

Want to find out more about the history of Thanksgiving Day? Click here for more information, or here for more about Roosevelt's declaration.