Thanksgiving 2019 date and festive traditions to mark the day
When is Thanksgiving in 2019? Thanksgiving 2019 is on Thursday, the 28th of November (28/11/2019). People often ask questions about the date of this holiday – why is it always on a different day? It is always on Thursday?
Why is Thanksgiving always on a different date? The holiday is not celebrated on a specific date, but on a specific day, which is always the 4th Thursday of November for the USA and the second Monday in October in Canada. That is way dates differ each year.
Thanksgiving 2019 –brief history notes
Thanksgiving was first celebrated in the United States in 1621 but it was not an official holiday. After celebrating the first Thanksgiving, the holiday became popular in other parts of the country, but settlers picked different days to mark it. After the US became an independent state, Congress recommended that this celebration be celebrated only one day a year by the whole nation.
In 1789, George Washington, the first president of America, officially announced 26 November for Thanksgiving. The holiday, however, continued to be celebrated in the United States on different dates in the various states. On October 3, 1863 President Abraham Lincoln officially announced that the holiday would be celebrated on the last Thursday of November in all states and by all believers.
The Presidential Turkey pardon is one of the most interesting Thanksgiving traditions, although it is a relatively new one. US Presidents were gifted with turkeys and generally, these birds were eaten. It was President John F. Kennedy who pardoned a turkey on November 19, 1963, stating “Let’s keep him going” but it was President Ronald Reagan who held the first “Pardon of the Turkey” official ceremony in 1987 and his successor, George HW Bush, made the pardoning ceremony into a White House tradition which goes on from 1989.
Thanksgiving 2019 – honoring the traditions
This is the oldest holiday, gathering family and friends together. It has its traditions and Thanksgiving 2019 should not be an exception. Although widely associated with a big meal, parades, football, and Black Friday, this day is all about expressing the feeling of gratitude for what you have and getting together with family.
Of course, the turkey is the star on the festive table and traditional foods like stuffing, gravy, sweet potatoes, cornbread, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce are a large part of the celebration. Pies – pumpkin, pecan, sweet potato or apple – are the traditional dessert at the end of the festive meal.