The first Thanksgiving was a harvest festival, and wasn’t actually called Thanksgiving. It was called Harvest Home.
TRUE: The phrase “Thanksgiving Day” was first used officially after President Lincoln declared the last Thursday in November a national holiday in 1863.
The turkey could have been America’s national bird.
TRUE: Benjamin Franklin, in 1784, suggested the wild turkey would be a more appropriate national bird, instead of the bald eagle.
Pumpkin pie has been beloved for a long, long time - it is America’s favorite pie.
FALSE: The research shows that apple pies are America's favorite, with pumpkin coming in second place.
"Jingle Bells" was originally a Thanksgiving Day song.
TRUE: Its composer intended it to be a Thanksgiving Day song. But the melody quickly became a Christmas hit in 1859.
Each year, about 20 million turkeys are cooked.
FALSE: Thanksgiving Day and turkey go hand-in-hand, so the approximite number - 46 million.
In US there are towns named "Turkey".
TRUE: There are four, and they are in Texas, Arizona, Louisiana and North Carolina.
The USA is the only country to celebrate Thanksgiving.
FALSE: Canada celebrates their Thanksgiving on the second Monday of October.
Two turkeys are sent to the White House each year.
TRUE: Only one of the turkeys is actually meant to be pardoned by the president, while the second turkey is a backup, should anything happen to the first.
Thanksgiving was never cancelled.
FALSE: Colchester in Connecticut postponed its Thanksgiving feast for a week due to lack of pumkins for pumpkin pie.
About 28 million people watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade annually.
TRUE: Approximately 28 million Americans tune in to the Macy's Parade. Another 3.5 million people view it in person, and roughly 10,000 participate.
Thanksgiving is America’s third-favorite holiday.
FALSE: Thanksgiving ranks as the second-favorite U.S. holiday, ahead of Halloween but behind Christmas.
Doctors are busiest on the day after Thanksgiving.
FALSE: Actually, plumbers are the busiest. Things like turkey grease and even potato peelings tend to clog up drains.
