The holidays are upon us! I had barely dropped bags of Halloween candy into my shopping cart when I turned into the next aisle and was bombarded by a full-blown display of Christmas. The retail community had completely overlooked the day set aside for gratitude and giving thanks.
This revelation gave me pause, as I wondered how the celebration of Thanksgiving came about. Was it suggested by a group of civic-minded people or just one person? How was it decided to celebrate the day on the fourth Thursday in November?
So, like much of my research, down the rabbit hole I went. To my delight, I discovered once again it was a woman who led the campaign, giving us a day set to give thanks for the blessings and freedoms we enjoy today.
Suddenly finding herself a widow and single mother with children to support–including a brand-new baby–Sarah wrote a book, Northwood. Its success led to a job offer for the “editorship” of a new “ladies” magazine, turning Godey’s into one of the most important periodicals in 19th century America. Though it is now remembered primarily for its fashion plates, crafts, and household tidbits, it covered social issues as well.
Year after year, Godey’s Lady’s Book published the same plea. Each year the campaign brought new success. By 1851, 29 out of 31 states celebrated a day of Thanksgiving. However, not on the same day so she continued to insist the holiday be celebrated on the exact same day.
Despite her claims, she had not achieved the ultimate endorsement; a proclamation from the President. In 1861, with civil war looming, she focused on national unity as her strongest selling point.
Finally, under these conditions and the stress of considerable loss of life, a devastated Southern economy, and public support for the holiday, President Abraham Lincoln endorsed and proclaimed, “a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelt in the heavens.” Furthermore, he stated, Americans should “fervently implore” blessings from the Almighty to “heal the wounds of the nations, and to restore it…to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and union.”
Successive presidents continued the tradition and proclaimed a yearly Thanksgiving at the end of every November. Still not satisfied, Hale’s magazine urged Congress to recognize the holiday. Unfortunately, she didn’t live to see the Congressional Proclamation of the Thanksgiving story (which finally took place in 1941), but by the 1870’s Thanksgiving was already a part of America’s culture.
The national holiday has become just what Sarah Josepha Hale envisioned: a celebration of home and hearth and the blessings for which we are grateful.
***********************************************
Giveaway!
Two lucky winners will each receive an e-book edition of my upcoming release, “Ivy” Christmas Quilt Brides. Just leave a comment below telling me how you celebrate Thanksgiving in your home.
**********************************************
Upcoming Release
He was the town bully.
She was his target.
Has anything changed?
Years ago, Ivy Sutton was drawn to the new orphan boy in town. Unfortunately, she soon became the focus of Grady Walsh’s mischievous deeds in school.
Ivy is back home in Harmony, Kansas for good but is she willing and able to forgive the boy who made her childhood unbearable?
Grady Walsh lost his heart to the sweet girl the day she gave him a quilt. Now, as a well-liked and respected tradesman in Harmony, can he make up for the reckless actions of his youth? Or will another steal er away before they have a chance to discover a kind of love that might heal the pain from the past?
A sort of crown of leaves. The cork should be a very long one, and the upper part thinned off all around with a knife.
