Ah, Thanksgiving. Such a wonderful time of year. Turkey, friends and family — what's not to love? Even with all those fun traditions, there's a lot about this special day that the average person doesn't know. So let's take a look at some obscure facts about our beloved holiday.
1. What we consider to be "traditional Thanksgiving food" isn't actually traditional. Like, at all.
The pilgrims didn't actually eat turkey or pumpkin pie. They were servin' up some grilled pigeon instead.
2. The pilgrims didn't wear buckled hats either.
Sorry to break it to you.
3. Cranberries weren't originally used to make cranberry sauce.
Native Americans actually used cranberries to treat arrow wounds and to dye clothes.
4. A woman named Sarah Josepha Hale came up with the idea to celebrate Thanksgiving.
You may also know her as the author of the infamous song, "Mary Had A Little Lamb."
5. Abraham Lincoln made it a national holiday.
Sarah Josepha Hale wrote good ole' Honest Abe a letter and asked him to make it a legit holiday for our country, and he was all for it.
6. On the contrary, Thomas Jefferson said Thanksgiving was "the most ridiculous idea ever conceived."
Not surprising — historians often described him as a d-bag anyway.
7. FDR moved Thanksgiving in 1939 in hopes of bettering the economy.
It was a big hassle that, in the end, had no beneficial impact.
8. The night before Thanksgiving is the sole biggest day for bar sales in the United States.
It even beats out New Year's Eve and St. Patty's Day.
9. There are around 250 million turkeys raised annually in the United States in preparation for Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving is practically a turkey genocide.
10. Minnesota produces the most turkey in the United States.
So when you think of Minnesota, you'll now associate it with extremely cold winters and an abundance of turkey.
11. ...So it's not surprising that the world's largest man-made turkey is located in Frazee, Minnesota.
Those Minnesotans are loud and proud when it comes to turkey pride.
12. The pilgrims ate their grilled pigeon with... spoons and knives!
They were living in a time when forks hadn't been invented yet!
13. Ever since 1934, the Detroit Lions always play on Thanksgiving.
Because what's Thanksgiving without football?
14. The first TV dinner was created because people didn't know what to do with all their Thanksgiving leftovers.
T'was the start of a genius idea, and all lazy people are quite thankful for it.
15. Live animals from the Central Park Zoo were included in the original Macy's Day Parade.
Lions, bears, camels, elephants and more were featured!
16. The average individual eats 4,500 calories on Thanksgiving day.
That's enough to gain 1.3 pounds. Keep that in mind while debating whether or not to get seconds.
17. ...Which makes sense, because Americans eat about 535 million pounds of turkey on Thanksgiving day.
That's almost twice the weight of the Empire State Building.
18. Last, but certainly not least, one of your favorite Christmas songs, Jingle Bells, was originally written to be a Thanksgiving song.
I bet you'll never be able to sing it with the same level of Christmas enthusiasm now. Sorry.
For more interesting facts, you can visit here, here and here!
