Remember way back when – OK sure. It was just a few days ago. – when we shared you to keep conversations light at Thanksgiving, and to have interesting (and safe) topics at-the-ready?
Well, we didn’t want to leave in the lurch without providing you a cheat sheet – you’ve got enough going on, right? So we found this list from Good Housekeeping of fun, safe and interesting Thanksgiving facts that you can have tucked up your sleeve – literally or figuratively; your call – for when things get too quiet, or worse, too heated.
- The first Thanksgiving was a three-day celebration.
Today, Thanksgiving is one day — but the Pilgrims wanted to party even longer and decided to extend the affair when Wampanoag guests came to join them.
- It’s unclear if colonists and Native Americans ate turkey at their feast.
There is no definitive evidence that the traditional Thanksgiving entrée was ever served but they did, however, indulge in other interesting foods like lobster, seal, and swan.
- Parts of Plymouth, Massachusetts, looks just as it did in the 17th century.
Historic Plimoth Plantation stays true to its roots – and even hosts a Thanksgiving dinner complete with numerous authentic courses, tales of colonial life, and centuries-old songs.
- Thomas Jefferson refused to declare Thanksgiving a holiday.
Jefferson refused because he strongly believed in the separation of church and state and since Thanksgiving involved prayer, he thought making it a holiday would violate the First Amendment.
- The woman behind “Mary Had a Little Lamb” also earned Thanksgiving’s recognition as a holiday.
In 1863, writer and editor Sarah Josepha Hale convinced President Abraham Lincoln to officially declare Thanksgiving a national holiday after writing countless articles and letters to persuade the president.
- The first Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade didn’t feature any balloons.
But when the parade made its big debut in 1924, it did have something even cooler than balloons: animals from the Central Park Zoo.
- Good Housekeeping’s illustrator is to thank for the parade’s first balloons.
German American illustrator Tony Starg, who completed illustrations for Good Housekeeping, also had a passion for puppetry, which he used to make the amazing floats come to life in 1927.
- In 1939, Thanksgiving was celebrated on the third Thursday in November, not the fourth.
Even though the holiday had been celebrated on the fourth Thursday since for decades, President Roosevelt bumped it up a week to add seven more shopping days to the holiday season until 1942.
- A Thanksgiving mix-up inspired the first TV dinners.
In 1953, a Swanson employee accidentally ordered 260 tons of Thanksgiving turkeys so a salesman came up with the idea of filling 5,000 aluminum trays with the turkey and sides. In one year, over 10 million were sold.
- About 46 million turkeys are cooked for Thanksgiving each year.
And on Christmas, 22 million families also serve a traditional turkey.
- Not everyone eats turkey on Thanksgiving.
According to the National Turkey Federation, only 88 percent of Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving – leaving 12 percent to eat something else entirely.
- The traditional Thanksgiving meal boasts an average 229 grams of fat.
And that’s about three to four times the amount of fat you should eat in a day – and over 3,000 calories, too.
- Presidentially pardoned turkeys pardoned do some pretty cool things.
President George H.W. Bush pardoned the first turkey in 1989, and it’s a tradition that continues today. Some turkeys have been sent to Disneyland and Walt Disney World parks to serve as grand marshal in their annual Thanksgiving parades while others have vacationed at Washington’s Mount Vernon.
- Only male turkeys gobble.
Male turkeys, also known as gobblers, actually make the sound whereas female turkeys cackle instead.
- Most Americans like Thanksgiving leftovers more than the actual meal.
Almost eight in 10 agree that the second round of stuffing, mashed potatoes, and pie are better than the big dinner itself.
- The Butterball Turkey Talk Line answers almost 100,000 calls each season.
In 2016, the company’s popular cooking crisis management team also introduced a 24-hour text message line for the lead-up into the big day.
- There are four places in the country named Turkey.
The U.S. Census has identified another four called Cranberry, and a grand total of 34 named Plymouth.
- An estimated 50 million pumpkin pies are eaten on Thanksgiving.
But according to The American Pie Council, more Americans prefer apple pie overall, with pumpkin ranking second place.
- Black Friday is the busiest day of the year for plumbers.
Thanks to all that food, Roto-Rooter reports that kitchen drains, garbage disposals, and yes, toilets require more attention the day after Thanksgiving than any other day of the year.
- 32 million people begin Black Friday shopping on Thanksgiving.
Even though many consumers think stores shouldn’t be open on Thanksgiving, many still shop on the holiday, with Black Friday attracting nearly 115 million people.
So there you have it. Keep these little facts and silly stories up your sleeves for a ‘break-glass-in-case-of-emergency’ conversation starter – or changer – this Thanksgiving week.
And from all of us in the DeLeon Sheffield Company family to yours, we wish you and your family a happy, safe and gut-busting Thanksgiving!
Because at DeLeon Sheffield Company, ‘We’re More Than Realty; We’re Family.’
LINK 8 Tips To Survive Thanksgiving This Year
