Next week, families across the country will gather together in fellowship to share food and conversation.
In case the discussions take a turn toward the dark side, here are a few Thanksgiving tidbits you can use to shift the tone back to neutrality.
“Thank you, Sarah; The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving” is a book by Laurie Halse Anderson and Matt Faulkner I read aloud when I was the librarian at Lincoln School. It’s the story of how Thanksgiving became a national holiday. Before I read this book, I didn’t know much about Superhero Sarah Hale, but I became a fan of hers immediately. And it doesn’t hurt another famous guy whom I admire also played a role.
Sarah’s secret weapon was her pen. She was the first woman magazine editor in America. When something happened she felt was wrong, she wrote letters and articles to inform and lead to change.
And that included Thanksgiving.
The first Thanksgiving took place in 1621. Wampanoag Native Americans and pilgrims feasted for three days. President George Washington declared a day of thanks in 1789, but not all presidents and states observed the holiday consistently. Thanksgiving was drifting away.
Sarah Hale wanted our country to celebrate giving thanks together. So she began writing letters; thousands of hand-written letters were mailed to politicians and newspapers. She asked readers for support.
Many others joined the cause, writing more letters until states did make Thanksgiving a holiday. But there were still too many inconsistencies among the celebrations. Sarah wanted everyone in the nation to give thanks on the same day.
She wrote to President Zachary Taylor, asking for an official proclamation to make Thanksgiving a federal holiday. He declined.
After the next presidential election, Sarah tried again and wrote to President Millard Fillmore. He also refused. She waited for the following election and then wrote to Franklin Pierce. Same answer. Next came President James Buchanan. She gave him reasons why the entire country should gather together on the fourth Thursday of November.
He disagreed. There was a huge issue looming in the country, and it was about to get worse. War appeared to be imminent, and no one was feeling grateful. State against state; brother against brother; North against South; the Civil War tore families and communities apart.
Sarah was devastated by the war but became more vigilant than ever. She wrote a letter to President Abraham Lincoln, pointing out Americans needed Thanksgiving more than ever. Perhaps a day to pause and consider unity and blessings could bring us together.
And Lincoln agreed. On Oct. 3, 1863, President Lincoln issued a proclamation for all Americans to observe the last Thursday of November as an official holiday.
It took 38 years of letter writing and thousands of letters but Sarah Hale, a true hero, saved Thanksgiving for everyone. She didn’t quit or give up. What an example of perseverance and dedication she was.
When you are going around your Thanksgiving table saying what you are grateful for, add a word of thanks for Sarah Hale and her quill pen. One more thing: if all this historical information doesn’t get your conversation back on track, share this: Sarah also wrote the familiar nursery rhyme, “Mary Had a Little Lamb.”
Letters, a lady, a lamb, and Lincoln = Thanksgiving.
- Karen Roth is a semiretired librarian/educator living in Ottawa. She can be reached at newsroom@shawmedia.com.