10 Thanksgiving Facts You Didn't Know About

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  • 01

    The woman responsible for introducing the idea of Thanksgiving as a national holiday was the same woman who wrote 'Mary Had a Little Lamb.'

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  • 02

    Hale campaigned through five presidencies to get Thanksgiving on the national calendar, until Abraham Lincoln finally declared it a national holiday in 1863.

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  • 03

    She was also responsible for introducing practically every typical Thanksgiving dish onto the menu.

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  • 04

    In 1939, Franklin Delano Roosevelt tried to change the date of Thanksgiving to stimulate the economy.

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  • 05

    Turkey was not eaten at the first Thanksgiving dinner. Various types of water fowl were eaten instead.

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  • 06

    Pilgrims commonly celebrated Thanksgiving multiple times a year.

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  • 07

    Only about 50% of sailors on the Mayflower were called "pilgrims." The other 50% were non-puritans simply looking for adventure in the New World, and were referred to as "strangers."

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  • 08

    91% of all Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving.

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  • 09

    That translates to 7 billion pounds of turkey being consumed every Thanksgiving holiday.

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  • 10

    The Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys both play a game on Thanksgiving day because they used to be obscure franchises, and their owners wanted to increase their popularity.

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